


Trust is the magic (that changes the world)

by this_evergreen_soul



Category: Memories of the Alhambra (TV)
Genre: F/M, WHEW feels good getting this out, alternate title: the finale we deserve, and it was still complicated, i take a lot of liberties here that you may not agree with but, so i just.......did what worked for this story lmao, the rules of this world (or lack thereof) are hard to grasp even after rewatching
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-25
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2019-11-05 05:50:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 40,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17912969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/this_evergreen_soul/pseuds/this_evergreen_soul
Summary: It’s her turn now.Sitting in the cab on the way to a place she’s frequented more than her own home as of late, Hee-ju knows this time is different. This time she’s not going to sit around waiting for someone else to do something. Especially since the only one who can isn’t here. So now… it’s her turn.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! So I just finished Memories of the Alhambra and like manyyyy of you I needed more than that ending gave us lmao. So this one goes out to my best friend who watched the drama with me, ranted about the ending with me, theorized with me, and then told me I needed to move on. This is me… moving on. hehe 
> 
> I plan to make this 3 parts (probably) this first part I just needed to get out because now that it's published I feel like I need to follow through and finish. The second and third parts will be much longer than this first chapter as it's basically a short intro to the story. I'm thinking the whole thing will be about 10k. 
> 
> I basically wanted to write my own ending/episode 17/epilogue whatever you want to call it. I needed to see Hee-ju finally DO something, kick some ass, and bring Jin-woo back to this world after that sacrifice he made. He deserves a nap, a home cooked meal, and some PEACE. Hee-ju deserves to have her whole ass family together again and a writer who actually lets her live up to her potential as a character (because she had. So. much of it.) And I deserve closure. So.... here we go 
> 
> Title taken from the closing message on the Netflix version of the drama: "Trust is the magic that changes the world, not technology."
> 
>  
> 
> EDIT (after final chapter posting): I just came back to laugh at myself bc.... 10k ??? LMAO

 

It’s her turn now.

Sitting in the cab on the way to a place she’s frequented more than her own home as of late, Hee-ju knows this time is different. This time she’s not going to sit around waiting for someone else to do something. Especially since the only one who can isn’t here. So now… it’s her turn.

 

***

Hee-ju thought back to the warmth of the cafe and the aroma of coffee floating through the air. Something that would probably be comforting to most people... but she hadn't been focusing on any of those things then.

 

_“That makes no sense.”_

 

_“It really happened!”_

 

_“Stop lying... no user in the game can shoot guns. The highest level right now is 25, and you can only buy a gun once you reach level 50. The game just came out a few days ago -- no one could’ve gotten that far yet."_

 

_“Listen, I know I saw him. He’s freakishly good too.”_

 

_“Then I’m sure he was an NPC.”_

 

_“No, he was a user. Why would an NPC even help me? Besides… Jung-ho saw it too! I wasn’t the only one!”_

 

_“Nah, there’s no way.”_

 

Over the past year Hee-ju's blood had run cold more times than she could count, but in this instance it was a welcome sensation. At times, hope could be the most excruciating feeling in the world… but moments like these were a reminder of why she had chosen to hold onto it. 

 

_Hee-ju charged over to their table._

 

_“What did you just say?”_

 

_The stranger blinked up at her with the kind of look in his eyes she’d seen directed at someone she cared about far too many times. It was the kind of look that asked if she was crazy._

 

_“..Uhh...”_

 

Hee-ju knew it had been impolite of her to butt into their conversation, but after the year she’s had she knows there are much more important things to waste her worries on.

They told her everything they knew about this unknown player --  _unknown_  due to his bizarre lack of a userID. He had a gun meaning he had to be a high level player... He wasn’t an NPC... and he was going around helping other players.

It could only be one person.

 

_“Where did this happen?”_

 

_“It was over by the church in, um… Jongno District?”_

 

That was all the poor, startled guy could manage before Hee-ju was out the door, Americano forgotten as her heels pounded against the cold, hard pavement.

Hailing a cab she got in and told the driver where to go before finally taking out the small, black case she’d been carrying with her everywhere for the past 12 months. Even when the game had been shut down she held onto it because it felt like her only connection to Jin-woo.

She was still putting in the lenses as the cab pulled up to the curb. She paid, stepped out of the car and stared up at the looming church looking no more inviting at night than it did during the day. The building that, up until now, had been the source of her grief looked different suddenly. Like it could also be the source of her redemption.

Hee-ju closed her eyes and opened them again. She watched the numbers load up rapidly as she crossed the street.

 

**_THIS IS YOUR 1ST LOGIN_ **

 

She glanced at her userID in the bottom left corner of her vision and was barely able to hold back her flinch at the reminder. Hee-ju still had trouble fighting her guilt at the possibility that she had been the reason Emma stabbed Jin-woo with the Key to Heaven.

But she was tired of feeling guilty and sad and empty. She'd told Director-- no, he'd been CEO for a while now-- Park that she would wait for Jin-woo. That she believed in him. Now she could finally do something to show it.

The sounds of evening traffic in Seoul were the only things that fell onto her ears as Hee-ju passed through the entrance to the park. No sword fighting. No shouts of gamers going into battle. And no gunshots. No one even seemed to be present. Her heels clacked against the concrete as she walked briskly up the path while taking stock of the area around her, eyes painfully wide to ensure she didn’t miss a thing.

As Hee-ju looked for a familiar figure in the dark she silently promised herself -- and Jin-woo -- something. He wasn’t going to fight alone this time.

  

* * *

 

He knows he’s standing too far into the shadows for her to see him just yet, but he sees her. It’s been so long since he’s seen that face and yet it feels like just yesterday he was staring up at her window debating whether it was more selfish of him to go to her or to drop the keys and leave without a word.

 

So in the end he chose what was more difficult. If he had gone in to take one more look into those teary, hopeful eyes of hers he didn’t think he would have been able to make himself leave.

 

He’d already frozen time once to steal one last kiss from her and didn’t have the luxury of doing so again.

 

Besides, Hee-ju had enough memories of him walking away to last a lifetime. He wasn’t looking to add any more to the pile.

 

It’s that last thought that urges Jin-woo’s feet forward. He's glad that despite the messed up circumstances they’ve found themselves in once again, he can at least do this much. Close the distance between them by finally doing what she deserves, what he should’ve been doing all along -- going to her.

 

And what happens after that? Jin-woo isn’t sure, but he has a feeling they’ll figure it out together.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UGH I just love these characters a lot. Please look forward to part 2! If you enjoy please share with other suffering souls who needed more from that finale~
> 
> (The one thing I want people to note before we go further is that the last location we see Jin-woo at the very end of the drama is apparently Heunginjimun Gate in Seoul. When Se-ju said Jin-woo was probably alive somewhere in his own “instance dungeon” (indun) I imagined it would be in the area that surrounded that church from the last few episodes. However in real life that church is located in Cheongju. SO, for the purposes of this story the church is located at the same place as Heunginjimun Gate in Seoul and that’s where Jin-woo has been in his indun. K thanks.)


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow I’m SO sorry for the wait guys but this part ended up being like….more than twice as long as I expected. And we didn’t even get to the kickass Hee-ju parts yet. Wild. I PROMISE they’re coming in part 3. (though maybe not as much as you’d like since i realized i suck at writing action and fight scenes). Anyways, I hope you enjoy this part guys :) 
> 
> #stillnotoverthatfinale

 

 

_***A NEW USER HAS APPEARED*** _

 

Hee-ju held her breath as she turned around, the notification shocking her. Her eyes followed a blue arrow that pointed to a figure coming from the shadowed area alongside the bushes -- a player with the words “UNKNOWN ID” where his name should have been.

His limp was gone -- had she known that? Hee-ju couldn’t remember if his healed leg was a side effect of the game but she didn’t care much at the moment as he continued to walk forward with that perfect stride. She promised herself she wouldn’t cry-- God knows she had shed enough tears over the past year-- yet she still found her eyes stinging at the sight of him.

He wore the same outfit she last saw him in through the back windshield of a taxi: light brown jacket, dark shirt and jeans.

It was one of the memories that hit her most often, driving away from him that night. She didn’t think she would ever be able to forget the view of him growing smaller and smaller as they drove, the image sharp in her mind no matter how blurry the tears in her eyes had made him look.

His hair was slightly disheveled as if he’d just finished fighting, his lips tilted up ever so slightly on the right, and his eyes focused entirely on her.

She could almost pretend the last 12 months were nonexistent. Like she had actually followed the dreadful feeling in her gut and forced the driver to turn their car around and go back to Jin-woo before he did something she would regret.

But seeing him now, it was like Hee-ju’s feet were frozen. She couldn’t bring herself to move forward after coming all this way, afraid it really might be just a dream. 

But still, he came closer. And then suddenly he was right in front of her, just out of reach.

For a second, Hee-ju couldn’t hear anything but the blood rushing through her own ears. Then his voice cut through the silence.

“I’m sorry.”

Hee-ju merely blinked at him, stunned. She still couldn’t believe he was standing here, much less speaking to her. He continued anyway.

“I said I would be back in the morning. But I wasn’t, I’m sorry.”

 

_I'll see you in the morning._

 

The very last thing Jin-woo had said to her. 

It was those words that broke the spell cast by Hee-ju’s disbelief and made her realize this was real. _He_ was real.

He was here.

She didn’t cry as she threw herself into his arms but oh, she wanted to.

Jin-woo didn’t say anything else as he held onto Hee-ju’s small form. It was like he knew explanations would have their time, but this right here was necessary. This was what she needed more than anything else in the world right now.

Hee-ju’s brain was a mess of confusion, but she silenced the fray inside her mind and ordered it to focus on more important things. Like his warmth. The strength of his arms. And especially on the way his chin settled comfortably atop of her head like maybe he had been waiting for this too.

They stood there like that for a while. Neither wanted to be the one to break the comforting embrace that made them feel more whole than they’d been in a long time. But after some time passed, Hee-ju allowed the sting of reality to penetrate her bubble once more. As overjoyed as she was to see Jin-woo, she knew he needed more than just her hugs and kind words in order to fix whatever was going on.

As if reading her thoughts, Jin-woo removed his arms from around her and placed one on the small of her back, urging her forward.

“Come on. I know you have questions,” he said. “We should talk.”

Jin-woo led her over to a bench in the small clearing in the park, away from the path and anyone who might be passing through. He sat with Hee-ju’s hand clasped gently in his own. It’d been so long since he’d felt the touch of another human, since he’d encountered someone who didn’t want to fight or hurt him.

His mind flashed back to that night, heart heavy, dreading having to recount the details. It wasn’t an easy story to tell-- not only was it painful, but it was confusing. Jin-woo himself wasn’t even quite sure what had happened and he lived it.

Hee-ju had to keep from flexing her fingers and squeezing Jin-woo’s hand to make sure he was real. Her mind was like a battlefield of questions fighting to be asked first-- but she knew there was really only one that mattered.

“How are you…” She started, looking at him with uncertainty, not even sure how to phrase what she was asking.

Jin-woo took pity on her and finished the thought. “--Alive?”

Hee-ju nodded, relieved. She knew that _he_ knew what everyone thought had happened to him.

Dead. Deleted. No chance of survival -- whether in the real world or otherwise.

He chuckled but it was without humor, “I’m not even really sure. I have memories of that night until a certain point, but they still don’t make sense. You saw the… bug remnants, I’m assuming?”

Hee-ju nodded, her expression grave.

“And mine was one of them?” Jin-woo asked.

She nodded again, a shadow falling across her eyes that told him how much she wished she could forget the moment she ever saw that pile of dust. He turned away from that look.

Hee-ju stared at Jin-woo’s profile. He appeared frustrated, like even though she had just confirmed something he had already thought, that confirmation only made the mess inside his head more difficult to sort through.

She turned his face back towards hers, her touch feather-light on his chin, “Can you just, maybe start from the beginning? What happened that night? What do you remember?”

Jin-woo looked at her and struggled to bring the memories to the surface, still so raw, even a year later. He took a deep breath...

 

**_FLASHBACK (12 months, 6 days ago)_ **

 

_The strings of the guitar echoed off of the high ceilings of the church. Such a soothing melody that now sounded to him like a song of mourning._

 

_She was back._

 

_And she was calling for him._

 

_Jin-woo rose from his seat and forced his grief aside, focusing on what he had to do next. At this point it was simply instinct, after all he'd been doing it since he was a child._

 

_As he passed each pew his footsteps grew slower, an appropriate reaction considering what had happened the last time he walked towards the guitarist, Key to Heaven in hand._

 

_Finally, Jin-woo stopped in front of her. “Hello, Emma.”_

 

_“Hello,” she greeted him, “You look exhausted.”_

 

_He was. He couldn’t remember the last time he slept or ate. But it was worth it. Because he had finally finished his mission._

 

_He could be free now… couldn’t he?_

 

_“It’s all over now.” At least he sincerely hoped so._

 

_“Why did you take the Key to Heaven? You gave it to me.” Emma’s tone was as flat as ever and yet somehow he felt as though she was chastising him. As though she truly was confused by the idea of him trying to change his fate._

 

_“I was afraid. I didn’t...” Jin-woo struggled to speak, his throat tightening as he continued, “…didn’t want to die.”_

 

_Emma didn’t even blink at his confession. She offered no reassurances, only what needed to be done._

 

_“Let me hold onto it now,” she said, palm outstretched._

 

_Jin-woo knew he needed to hand the key over, that it wouldn’t truly be over until he did so. But his heart still raced as her hand reached out to him. His eyes welled as he passed the deceptively innocent looking item to Emma._

 

_He thought of Hee-ju, of how he promised her he would come back, and how he wasn’t sure if he would be able to keep that promise._

 

_The key glowed as Emma closed her hand around it._

 

_Jin-woo felt the regret rise up in him, knowing Hee-ju was waiting, even now._

 

_Faces flashed through his mind’s eye -- Hyung-seok, Soo-jin, Professor Cha, Son-ho… Jung-hoon._

 

_A tear fell._

 

_And then, all he felt was pain._

 

Hee-ju’s hands covered her mouth but they couldn’t silence the horrified gasp that left her at the knowledge that Emma had stabbed him not once but _twice_. She knew that she and Emma were entirely separate entities, but they still… shared a connection. And she couldn’t fathom causing that kind of pain to Jin-woo.

At this point Jin-woo had stopped speaking, as if he was also overwhelmed by his tale and needed a moment.

Her hand hovered over his chest, around where she thought evidence of the wound might be, if there even was one.

He must have read her thoughts-- or maybe she was just that transparent-- because he reached for her hand and laid it gently on his heart, his larger one covering hers. “There’s no scar.”

“The pain, it was the most excruciating I’ve ever felt, but…” Jin-woo brought their hands down to his lap. “There’s nothing.” 

Hee-ju was grateful he was at least saved from a physical reminder of that night. But she was still confused.

“So then... the dust? We thought you ended up like the others…” she trailed off.

“I’m not completely sure about that, actually.” Jin-woo’s eyebrows furrowed as he tried to work through what had happened after passing out. “I remember the pain, and I remember watching the progress bar load as my ‘bug’ was being deleted, but somewhere after 80% I couldn’t take it anymore and passed out, I think.”

Truthfully it had felt like death, what happened to him, but Jin-woo didn’t dare voice that thought aloud. Hee-ju’s expression still filled with worry for him, and he didn’t want her to know just how close he had been to never coming back.

“When I came to, I was laying on the floor of the church. I’m not sure how much time passed, only that I felt… different.”

The church. Hee-ju refused to think about all the times she had visited that church after he disappeared. If she had been logged in at the time… would she have seen him? 

“Different, how?” Hee-ju asked instead of torturing herself with those kinds of questions.

“My user ID disappeared, but all my other data remained. And when I tried to log out nothing happened." Jin-woo didn't have to try very hard to recall how disorienting those first few weeks were. "It would _say_ logged out but then I would blink and everything was still there. And I had these… blackouts. I was fully conscious but then all of a sudden the light would change and I knew time had passed. I was never sure if it was hours later or even days.” Jin-woo shook his head, remembering. 

“And when I tried to leave, I couldn’t. I tested how far I could go, but I physically couldn’t leave this park and the perimeter surrounding the church, and I…” He hesitated, “...still can’t actually.”

Not wanting to dwell on how he was trapped, Jin-woo kept speaking.

“And then, about 2 weeks ago I felt them re-launch the game.” 

“Wait, how did you know it’s been 2 weeks?” Hee-ju questioned. “I thought you couldn’t keep track of time?”

“I can’t explain how I knew, it was just a _feeling._ It’s like I felt the world buzz to life again when I didn’t even realize it’d been dormant. My blackouts stopped. That's when I started sensing the players. I would find them out in the park battling NPC soldiers, they were all beginners just starting out. I knew then that my best chance of being found was to cause a commotion and hope it got back to Yang-ju or Sun-ho or… you,” He smiled at her. “You were quicker than I’d thought you’d be.”

Hee-ju scoffed. She knew he didn’t really feel the passing of time while he was gone, but to her it had been an entire year.

 _Quick_ to Jin-woo had felt like an eternity to her.

“It’s weird,” Jin-woo kept talking, finding himself unable to stop. Having been alone with only his thoughts for so long had been harder than he realized. Talking through the events and his situation helped organize the chaos in his head.

“I feel like I’m still in the game but I’m not _part_ of the game. I’m here but I’m disconnected at the same time…" He shook his head, knowing it sounded crazy, "I don’t know."

She didn’t either but Hee-ju nodded anyway. She just needed him to keep talking, keep filling in the gaps. Maybe once she had all the information things would start to make sense. And she could finally do more than just pretend to understand this world her younger brother had created.

“So you’re disconnected,” Hee-ju tried to clarify, “Or feel like you are, yet… you can’t... leave?” She looked at him, hoping he would contradict her.

Jin-woo nodded, dashing her hopes immediately, “I’m not a player anymore. I don’t feel like one. But I’m not NPC either. I don’t know what I am. Just that I woke up right here on that day," he glanced at the church behind them, "And haven’t been able to leave since.”

Hee-ju was trying to process everything, but it was difficult. She hated the way all their questions only had half-answers.

“So after Emma… destroyed your bug, you passed out…” she looked to him for confirmation, continuing when he nodded, “And came back some time later…” It sounded unbelievable to her own ears, but then everything was at this point.

They both ignored the question of what had happened to his body during that time. Both Hee-ju and Son-ho had been logged into the game in order to see the bugs, but they never saw Jin-woo’s body that night. 

She wasn’t sure if he had just been invisible at that time or if he’d truly been gone. But that was impossible, wasn’t it? Because he was here now. Maybe not in the way he should have been, but he was still next to her. Solid, warm, and breathing.

Jin-woo must have been thinking along the same lines, but never had someone to tell him what they saw that night from a perspective that wasn’t his own.

He had always thought the concept of life and death was so sharply defined, but him being here was evidence that the line was much finer than anyone realized.

After a moment of silence they had both spent lost in thought, he finally told her the idea that had been plaguing him since he first realized he wasn’t dead. Jin-woo hesitated, looking out at the park and avoiding her eyes. He wasn’t even sure how to voice it.

“I think," he began, "That the game recognizes and respects… sacrifice.”

 

 _I think it saved me_.

 

_Because I saved Se-ju._

 

Jin-woo didn’t speak the words out loud but Hee-ju heard them as if he had.

It was a chilling thought that a game could have so much influence on the real world. Hee-ju looked away from Jin-woo’s profile down at her hands and realized she had goosebumps. Whatever Se-ju had created… it was truly magical. And it was dangerous.

To Jin-woo, this new version seemed to be much different. Like the reboot had stripped away all the magic that permeated the first game. A magic that ended with him. 

In his time here, he learned that magic played by rules he couldn’t even fathom and it was neither good nor evil-- it was its own thing. And that unpredictability was the scariest part of all.

Hee-ju felt the weight of the heavy thoughts floating between them. Their conversation had resulted in very few answers and even more questions. Suddenly not wanting to dwell on the past any longer, she decided to shift the focus onto something they _could_ control. Hopefully.

“Okay. So how do we fix this now?” Though she felt completely out of her depth, she needed to stay positive. “I know we still don’t even know what caused this to happen to you… but there has to be some solution.”  

Jin-woo pursed his lips, and the way he rose his eyebrows let Hee-ju know he had already started formulating a plan of action. “Well…” he started, unsure how to proceed. His obvious hesitancy made Hee-ju nervous.

“I was actually hoping your brother would be able to help with...this.” Jin-woo gestured to his body, watching her face and hoping he was right. He had no concrete evidence that Jung Se-ju had returned to his family, but he had completed the quest, the bugs were deleted, and Emma had called him the new “Master” -- everything pointed to his mission being successful. Se-ju should have been back in the real world for at least a year now. 

“Oh my god! Se-ju!” At the mention of her brother, Hee-ju sprung into action, completely forgetting that she had left him-- she scrambled for her phone, looking at the time-- hours ago.

It was only a little after 10pm, but Jin-woo assumed the 7 missed calls were why she was so frantic.

“I can’t believe I forgot!” She exclaimed with her phone tucked under her ear, already calling him back. “I left him at J One,” she explained, turning to Jin-woo.

Jin-woo blinked. _J One? My J One?_

“CEO Park, Yang-ju-ssi, and the rest of the team were so impressed with the game that they want to fund his research and even give him his own company,” she said distractedly as the call went to voicemail and she gave up, putting it away, eyebrows furrowed in worry. “He must have already gone back home.”

 Hee-ju looked up at Jin-woo, who was still processing that information, then back down to her bag, taking out her phone again.

 “I’ll just send him a quick text and tell him something came up and see if he got home alright,” She explained, unsettled.

Jin-woo watched her with a mixture of amusement and fondness, admiring the way she took care of her family.

“That’s great news, though. Maybe his first project can be how to get me back into the real world," Jin-woo suggested, only half-joking. “Preferably without the limp.”

Hee-ju finished sending the text and immediately gave him a look at his comment. She kept her phone on her lap where she would be able to easily see when he responded. Mulling over his words, though, she didn’t look confident.

“I don’t know… even getting Se-ju to agree to visit the company today was a battle. Besides, what makes you think he can get you out when he couldn’t get himself out?”

Hee-ju didn’t mean to sound so harsh, but thinking about how she almost lost her brother terrified her-- she still woke some mornings on the tail end of a nightmare. Their parents had died and it was understood that Hee-ju was the caretaker now. _She_ was the one responsible for her younger siblings, no matter how much she relied on her grandmother.

It had taken a while to come to terms with the fact, but Hee-ju knew in her bones if Jin-woo had never come to her hostel that night, she would have never seen Se-ju again. She wouldn’t have even known what happened to him.

“Hey,” seeing the emotions flit across her features, Jin-woo leaned in and forced her eyes to focus on his face. “I’m sure he can figure it out. Your brother’s a genius. Don’t underestimate him.”  

He tried to inject as much comfort into his voice as he could, but this was still uncharted territory for him. He hadn’t comforted anyone in years. No matter how close the two of them had become in such a short time, in actuality they were still so new.

“My brother created something not even he could handle,” Hee-ju shot back. “I don’t think he’s even touched his computer since he’s been back. He can barely stand to hear about the game, much less get back into programming it.” Even as she said the words she felt bad. He’d been making a lot of progress, his trip tonight to the company only solidified that. Maybe she wasn’t giving him enough credit... maybe Se-ju needed this. After all the guilt he suffered hearing about what his game had done to others, maybe what he needed was an opportunity to make something _good_ happen.

Jin-woo’s voice was confident when he spoke. “Trust him, he’s stronger than you think. Than he thinks too, probably.” _After all, he has you for a sister._

She gave him a small smile at that, softening like she wanted to believe his words. “I don’t know, sometimes I think Min-ju is the toughest one of us all.” She let out a huff of exasperation looking up at the sky.

Jin-woo couldn’t fight the smile that donned his face at the mention of the little firecracker. He was genuinely fond of the girl who spoke her mind and didn’t care what anyone thought.

“How’s the young idol-in-training doing anyway?” He asked, glad for the easy topic.

Hee-ju laughed thinking about the strange relationship Jin-woo and her sister shared, “She’s the same as ever. Focusing on her studies, of course. I told her if she wants to pursue her dreams of stardom then she still needs to have backup plans.” She sounded so much like a mother.

He knew she had experienced what it was like to put everything into a dream that had been mercilessly shattered by reality. Jin-woo respected the way Hee-ju supported Min-ju’s dreams, but encouraged a safety net so that if the same thing happened to her sister, Min-ju wouldn’t fall and cut herself on the broken pieces.

“She’s actually been the biggest help in Seju’s recovery, I think. It’s so hard for Halmoni and me-- we were just…” Hee-ju struggled for words, “Worried for so long that I think we forget -- but she treats him like a normal person," Hee-ju said, her voice growing quiet at the end. 

Jin-woo nodded, amused but not surprised. Min-ju had always treated him the same regardless of his circumstances. He had literally been laying in a hospital bed after falling 6 stories and she was in his room trying to play matchmaker. Even after being gone for a year the first thing she had said to him was that his cane made him look _hip_. So he didn’t doubt she was throwing Se-ju for a loop now. He smiled to himself, knowing the kid needed someone like that.

“Anyways,” Hee-ju continued, “Yang-ju has been dying to get Se-ju into the company for a while now, and the staff actually gave him a very warm welcome,” she reported happily, remembering the look on Se-ju’s face as he realized all those people had been clapping for him. 

“Oh, I don’t doubt that. Yang-ju might just be Se-ju’s biggest fan. I’m sure he already did something ridiculous like ask for an autograph,” Jin-woo joked, not knowing how true his words were.

They laughed together, and it felt good. Like these moments between them were long overdue. 

“Let’s see…” Hee-ju kept going, wanting to hold on to the pleasant mood. “Sun-ho is doing better. He had a really tough time after you were gone, but he’s actually going to retire from the company soon, now that the launch has been deemed a success,” she reported, thinking back to their conversation earlier that day. Hee-ju could hardly believe it had been just hours ago that CEO Park had told her to give up on Jin-woo and move on with her life... and now here he was.

Jin-woo nodded, genuinely happy for his friend, and felt his body relax at the light conversation they were enjoying. Glad to leave the heaviness behind for a moment, he leaned back and began to stretch his arm comfortably behind Hee-ju’s shoulders. “That’s good," Jin-woo replied, "He really deserves--”

“He’s also been trying to set me up on blind dates.”

Jin-woo stopped nodding. Looking over at Hee-ju, he schooled his face. His arm fell to rest on the back of the bench, yet refrained from touching her. He hadn’t considered that her life might have continued on in the past year while his had essentially been on pause.

“...And?” He said casually, hardly fooling himself, much less Hee-ju. “How are the undoubtedly pretentious, egotistical snobs he’s been sending your way?”  

Hee-ju scoffed at the nerve of him, “You know I remember once thinking you were a pretentious, egotistical snob yourself.”

Jin-woo wanted to laugh but hid it behind a smile. “Ah, but then you thought I was a pretentious, egotistical snob with the audacity to parade around my faux luxury accessories.”

“I told you that was Halmoni!” Hee-ju's face reddened from embarrassment, but she laughed anyway, thinking back to the mess surrounding their first impressions of each other.

She tried to school her face and failed, enjoying teasing him too much. “Anyways, I’m sure they would’ve all been nicer than you considering it’s not all that hard to do.”

Jin-woo had the gall to look offended before she rolled her eyes and interrupted whatever ridiculous, absurd comment he was about to defend himself with.

Someone should probably let him know that getting someone a bouquet of roses for their birthday doesn't exactly cut it when they end up leaving the country and ruining her party that very same night. And don't even get her started on the time he expected gratitude for giving her a towel and an escape from the rain while she was upset when he was the one who had made her cry in the first place. 

And yet, deep down, Hee-ju knew Yoo Jin-woo was a good man. A good man who had risked everything to do what was right, to save her brother. And that was enough for her.

“Don’t worry,” Hee-ju gave him a smile so sweet he knew she was mocking him. “Even after ruining my birthday, smashing one of my guitars, and basically conning me out of my hostel -- for some reason, I don't seem to be interested in any egotistical snobs but you.”

Jin-woo let out a loud laugh at her sarcastic words and the reminder of how fiery she could be, but inside... he was touched. Even through the teasing, Jin-woo could see that she’d truly forgiven all the times he’d wronged her, simply because she… what, cared about him?

He didn’t let himself think it was more than that.

He thought back to the night of her last birthday, when he was mourning Jung-hoon and all she had wanted to do was help dig him out of the hole he had sunk into. He'd been so harsh on her.

_“Do you have to be my boyfriend to enjoy my birthday with me? Fine, then I can be your girlfriend. What’s so hard about it?” she had asked._

_She was turning his own words on him and damn if he didn’t deserve it._

_"To be honest, I can do better.” She tilted her head innocently, “Don’t you agree?”_

Oh, he agreed. Before all of this, he knew he had been a selfish man who was entirely too focused on beating his enemies. Now, he considered himself a much better person, but with that came a myriad of issues and enough emotional baggage to sink a ship. He didn’t exactly consider himself a catch.

But here she was, smiling at him like just seeing his face erased all the worries in the world. Though truly all he did was make her life even more complicated.

Jin-woo tried not to get swept away by the wave of gratitude that hit him suddenly. Having her beside him was still something he was certain he didn’t deserve.

In the quiet lull that followed, Jin-woo’s ears picked up on the sounds of horns honking and buses driving through the streets surrounding the park. He could tell it was getting late.

Suddenly afraid she would leave, Jin-woo asked more questions about her life. He obviously had nothing new to report, but he was content to just listen to her talk. About her grandmother, her workshop, even her annoying friend who hated him.

At one point she mentions Min-ju again and tells him how she was the only other person who believed he would come back. She would always tell her, _Have hope, unni. Ahjussi has to come back, he has unfinished business._ And then she would wink and giggle like it was some inside joke she had with herself.

Their conversation went on for so long that Jin-woo shouldn’t have been surprised when Hee-ju started yawning. He didn’t know what time it was, just that it was late and he’d kept her from her family long enough. 

Jin-woo remembered the night she invited him inside her home and practically forced him to stay over. He remembered throwing out some rude, finicky comment about the couch in her workshop. He really hadn’t been exaggerating-- his car would have probably been more comfortable than that thing. But right now he would give anything to be able to go home with her and sleep on that poor excuse for a couch.

“You look tired,” Jin-woo told her, not wanting to tell Hee-ju to leave outright but knowing she wouldn’t do so on her own. “Shouldn’t you be getting back soon?”

She sighed, “I probably should.” Hee-ju wasn’t scared to leave him exactly, but she would be lying if she said the fear this entire meeting was a fluke hadn’t crossed her mind. She refused to allow that thought to hold any weight.

It was like that night in her workshop when he asked her how she could trust him to find Se-ju after all the ways he’d broken her trust. She told him it was harder to distrust. Right now, it hurt more to consider that this was all a lie than it did to hope that it was just the beginning to finding a solution.

She stood up, getting ready to walk back to the park entrance and hail a cab home. Jin-woo walked with her down the path to the end of the park. He didn’t touch her, didn’t hold her hand as they walked. As if he knew that would make this harder.

When Jin-woo suddenly stopped, she knew it was because this was as far as he could go. Hee-ju turned to him, trying to look as strong as she wished she felt.

Thankfully it wasn’t as hard as she thought it would be. Having a plan of some sort-- having a direction-- gave her comfort. Her conscience allowed her to leave him, knowing that her actions outside of his presence mattered more than simply standing still by his side.

She was about to step back from him when he spoke.

“Thank you for finding me.” Jin-woo had a small but genuine smile on his face. 

Throat tightening at his simple words, Hee-ju simply gave a tremulous smile back before walking away.

She couldn't resist turning around one more time and almost melted at the wave he sent her, that smile still there. She looked at him for a long moment and told herself with all the confidence she could muster that this wasn’t the end, it was just the beginning.

Then she logged out.

 

* * *

 

When Hee-ju blinked her eyes open the next morning the sun was already high in the sky. She felt surprisingly well-rested despite getting in at such a late hour. Stretching her arms, she burrowed into her comforter a little more -- just because she slept well didn’t mean she wanted to get out of bed just yet. Besides, she’d had the _best_ dream...

_Oh my god._

Hee-ju shot up from the bed and searched the night stand for her phone. It was almost noon-- how did Min-ju get to school?-- she couldn’t believe no one woke her. As she reached out to pick up her phone, a small black case clattered to the floor.

_The smart lenses._

Hee-ju stared for a moment as flashes of last night came back to her. No, it definitely hadn’t been a dream…

 

 

**_FLASHBACK (11 hours ago)_ **

 

_They were sitting side by side on the bench, a lull in the conversation that neither seemed to mind. As Hee-ju listened to the sounds of people walking around the city and cars driving through the streets, she could almost pretend it was a normal night. That they were just two normal people enjoying a peaceful evening together._

 

_Jin-woo broke the silence first. “You know, at this rate, I’m on track to ruin three of your birthdays. I knew I was bad with women but I think my pride is starting to take a hit.”_

 

_Hee-ju smiled at him, unbothered by those past memories since she knew this year was already different, even if he didn’t think so. He wasn’t running away this time, he was fighting to come back. To her, hopefully._

 

_She laughed, feeling cheerful despite their situation. “If I have to sacrifice just one more birthday in order to spend the rest of my birthdays with you, I think I can bear it.”_

 

_Jin-woo’s mind practically short-circuited as he processed her words. Immediately his mind pictured a future for them that involved spending every birthday together, and then every holiday… every weekend. And if he was being honest with himself it was... kind of nice. He knew Hee-ju had merely spoken without thinking, but he couldn’t help where his own mind had traveled in reaction to her words and he also couldn’t help the way he actually, well, wanted it._

 

_But once the words were out of Hee-ju’s mouth, her eyes widened as she heard the implication. She couldn’t believe she’d said that so casually. In an effort to lighten the mood she continued awkwardly, “I mean, a hundred roses... expensive earrings… how are you going to top those gifts? It better be good!” She laughed nervously avoiding his eyes, not wanting to see how Jin-woo would respond._

 

_She knew they were much more than the strangers who met outside her hostel that night in Granada, but in all the madness and everything they’d been through, they’d never exactly gotten a chance to sit down and talk about what that ‘more’ was. She couldn't assume..._

 

_Jin-woo could sense the tension rolling off of the woman beside him and knew she was probably beating herself up for speaking carelessly. What she didn’t seem to understand fully was how different he was now. Those words coming from any other woman might have raised a red flag, but Jin-woo knew Hee-ju was the last woman on earth who wanted him for his money._

 

_Hell, if she could put up with his baggage, she deserved all the Swarovski earrings in the world._

 

_But he didn’t know if it was fair to express interest in a future he wasn’t even sure he could give her. She deserved someone who could offer more than maybes. Someone who wasn’t haunted by ghosts that no one else could see._

 

_So Jin-woo played it off and laughed with her, not wanting her to spend the short time they had together feeling embarrassed._

 

_But... since nothing in their future was guaranteed, he didn’t want to have any regrets either._

 

_“Well, unfortunately," he said, "I can’t get you any expensive gifts due to my current situation, but...” he leaned in, lowering his face to hers, “I can make it up to you in other ways.”_

 

_Jin-woo raised an eyebrow, deliberately trying to tease her. And judging from the red spreading across Hee-ju's cheeks, it was working._

 

_At least now she was flushed from reasons other than embarrassment._

 

_He smirked at the way she was still nervous around him. They’d shared kisses before, on their last night together even, but those almost felt like another life. And with her in front of him like this, he could hardly remember anything. Every time might as well be the first when he was with her._

 

_Hee-ju was afraid to speak, as if he were a small animal and any move on her part would startle him away. A voice in her head had the nerve to fire back that he was definitely not the small animal in this situation._

 

_Jin-woo continued to lean in, slowly, seeing no signs of rejection on Hee-ju’s part. Her eyelids fluttered as his face came so close to hers that she could no longer look him in the eyes. He saw them fixate on his lips for a long moment before finally settling shut. His bangs brushed her forehead and he tilted his head ever so slightly to the right._

 

_He was surprisingly overwhelmed at the sensation of their breath mingling. Their breathing had unconsciously fallen into sync, making the moment feel intensely intimate. If he listened hard enough, he swore he could hear the pounding of her heart. Or maybe that was just his own._

 

_He took a moment to watch her like this, anticipation written across those delicate features._

 

_Then, as much as he wanted to do otherwise, he reached his hands up and cupped her jaw as his lips moved away from her own and towards her forehead._

 

_They pressed there for a long moment as his thumb brushed along the side of her jaw, reveling in the smoothness. What he wanted to say with this kiss, Jin-woo wasn’t entirely sure._

 

_“Thank you.”_

 

_“I missed you.”_

 

_“I’m here now, and I won’t leave you again.”_

 

_He moved away but stayed close enough to Hee-ju that when her eyes opened, he was all she could see._

 

_There was a mixture of surprise and disappointment on her face, but it quickly melted away into something else. Something that said she was genuinely touched by his innocent gesture._

 

_He smiled at her -- not speaking, just basking the feeling of her closeness -- before moving away completely. He didn’t let her go, though, he simply moved his hand from under her jaw to around her shoulder-- tucking her securely into his side._

 

_“Now. Tell me more about how the workshop is doing. I know you said things are going ‘well’ but I need more information than that. What are your profit margins like?”_

 

_The way he switched moods so seamlessly was jarring. Hee-ju blinked up at him, barely hearing the question as she had still been thinking about the feeling of his warm lips on her forehead. She already knew that would be the last thing she thought of before she fell asleep tonight._

 

_“Hmm? Can you say that again?”_

 

Hee-ju practically fell out of bed on her way out the door to find her brother. No wonder she’d slept so well, she thought, bare feet padding down the stairs, mind traveling back to the sweet moment they shared.

As she bounded into the kitchen, Se-ju was at the fridge with a ginger ale in his hand. He saw Hee-ju just as he was shutting the door. When he gave her a smile, he looked so much like his normal self that her heart warmed.

“Noona, you’re awake! I took Min-ju to school today, since you got back late last night and were still sleeping…” he twisted the cap off his drink but made no move to take a sip, simply placing the soda on the counter.

Se-ju looked at her expectantly, probably waiting for her to acknowledge how proud she was of him for taking such a big step.

Hee-ju _was_ really proud of his progress and wanted to tell him so, but for some reason the words that came out of her mouth instead were: “I found Jin-woo." 

Se-ju blinked for a moment as he attempted to process what she had just said.

His hand twitched and almost knocked over his soda but he fumbled around and was able to save it before it could spill everywhere.

“Jin-woo? Yoo Jin-woo? CEO Yoo? You _found_ him? What do you mean--that doesn’t--” Se-ju sputtered, “... _Where_?”

“By the church. The last place he was at before--” even after hearing Jin-woo tell her what happened, Hee-ju didn’t really know how to explain it herself, “--everything that happened.”

Se-ju on his end was struggling to put words together. His mouth was open, making vague shapes, as if he had so many questions he didn’t know where to start.

Hee-ju had wanted to talk to him and explain everything as clearly as she could, but once she saw her brother standing there, the only other person who might know what Jin-woo was experiencing _and_ possibly how to get him out of it, her mouth just took off, leaving her well-intentioned caution in the dust.

The confusion he was feeling right now was something she knew firsthand, so she made an effort to get the next words out calmly.

“He’s still… in the game. Not a player, exactly. Emma reacted to the bug exactly as you said she would and tried to-- delete him.” Hee-ju took a breath before continuing. “But something happened, and only his user ID was stripped away with whatever else was associated with it. But Jin-woo still has his credentials, his skills, his weapons. That’s all the same.” She explained.

Se-ju was listening intently. His eyes were wide and his eyebrows furrowed like he didn’t quite believe what she was saying, but he remained silent. Hee-ju could tell he was processing everything, his brain probably busy putting her words together and verifying how likely they were to be true against everything he knew about his own game.

“He says that he’s trapped,” she continued, fighting back the emotions that sprung up at the thought of him alone there right now.

“He can’t log out of the game no matter how many times he’s tried. And he can only leave the area surrounding the church up to a certain distance. I overheard some players talking in the cafe right outside the company, and when they mentioned a high-level user who seemed to appear out of nowhere...” Hee-ju thought back to the friend’s disbelief, “I knew it had to be him.”

“But trapped...? I don’t--” Se-ju shook his head, “How could he be trapped there? If he’s really in an instance dungeon... He should be free to leave as he pleases.”

 _An instance what?_ Hee-ju wanted to ask, but her brother kept talking. “He can’t log out, he can’t leave? Even after the reboot?”

Hee-ju shook her head in response.

“And you’re sure it’s really… him? Not some realistic in-game character?” He questioned.

“I’m positive,” she said forcefully. Hee-ju had thought if anyone would believe her, it would be Se-ju. She hadn't been prepared for how much his doubt hurt.

“I can prove it to you. Come with me, log in for just a--”

“No!” Se-ju shouted, eyes wild, the volume of his reaction startling even himself. His hands were shaking and he wouldn’t look his sister in the eyes. “No, I…” he tried again quietly, “...can’t. I can’t, noona, I’m sorry.” He finished, casting his gaze downward.

Hee-ju had known Se-ju might refuse to go into the game, but she didn’t realize he was still this afraid. She felt terrible for evoking such a reaction from him. She hadn’t thought before speaking-- all she could think was that they were _so close finally_ \-- 

“No, I’m sorry,” she apologized. She moved closer to her brother, forcing him to look at her and see that she was serious, “Of course I understand. I shouldn’t have asked that of you.”

Se-ju’s eyes looked calmer now, but she could also see the guilt creeping into the edge his expression. He felt responsible, she knew that, and yet he couldn’t bring himself to do anything to fix it. 

“Hey, I mean it.” She reached out to touch his arm, trying to comfort him, “It’s okay.”

He gave a small smile at her attempts to ease his guilt but she could see that it was still there in the way he held himself, shoulders slumped slightly.

She was about to change the subject, her mind already forming a Plan B if Se-ju wasn’t going to be able to help them -- she wouldn’t force her brother to confront something that was still so traumatic for him -- but before she could say anything else, Se-ju spoke up.

“Well, maybe,” he looked at her. “We could go to the company?”

Hee-ju waited for him to continue, not understanding.

“After yesterday, CEO Park practically told me I can come and go as I please. And if I want, I have access to all their resources for research and development purposes.” Se-ju’s words grew more confident as the topic shifted to something he knew well: computers, technology, programming.

“I’m sure they would let me access the servers if I wanted to go in and make improvements or suggestions to the game. We could go, and see if we can access Yoo Jin-woo’s information through the server. If he’s in the game, we should be able to see him,” Se-ju theorized. “Maybe that will give you an idea of what to do next. Or maybe there’s a programming issue that if we solve can help fix this.”

Se-ju still looked nervous, but more determined than before. “It’s been a while since I’ve actually touched the code for the game, but I’m sure I can easily do it. And, I mean, it’s the least I can do…” he shrugged.

“Really?” Hee-ju practically beamed at his responding nod.

“Wait,” she held her hands up, not wanting to pressure him. “Are you sure? I know you haven’t really touched your computers since coming back, and I know it’s… hard for you to interact with the game. It’s understandable,” Hee-ju said soothingly.

“Yeah," Her brother responded. "I mean, I know I’m safe now. It’s just… bad memories. But if Yoo Jin-woo is still in there, I can’t do nothing, you know?” He said it facing the window, his eyes taking in the sights like he needed a reminder that he had truly left the game world behind, and everything outside their house was his reality now.

“If you really think so, that would be great, Se-ju.” Hee-ju grabbed his hand, “Thank you,” she said earnestly.

He looked back at his sister and even though he looked a little uncomfortable at what he just proposed, his mouth still ticked up on one side at her gratitude, that tiny smile easing her concern just a little. “Have some breakfast," Se-ju told her, "We can go after you eat.” He reached for the fridge again, soda long forgotten, “I think Halmoni put some leftovers aside for you.”

She let her brother warm the food for her as she hurried back upstairs to change, excited for the first time in ages. She had meant to ask Se-ju how his time at the company had been last night, but it must have been positive if he was willing to go back. Seeing him surrounded by all those people who believed his game was a stroke of genius warmed Hee-ju’s heart. Her brother was brilliant and people recognized that. He also had a good heart, and she knew it killed him to know how his game had hurt people.

But that wasn’t his fault, and maybe all of this would help Se-ju realize that.

Maybe this would help him figure out how to forgive himself… and he could finally move on.

 

* * *

 

“Ugh my stomach hurts,” Hee-ju complained as they walked through the lobby of J One Holdings.

“That’s probably because you practically inhaled your food like you were a vacuum cleaner,” Se-ju said rolling his eyes. 

She smacked him in the arm, but laughed nonetheless. She loved when he acted like he used to-- always either teasing or exasperated with her, even though she was the big sister. It meant he was feeling better. 

“Fine,” she shrugged as they walked into the elevator. “I know I ate fast, but I just wanted to get here.”

She had to stop herself from thanking Se-ju _again_ since she didn’t want to make his being here seem like a big deal. But as they rode up to the 18th floor, Hee-ju felt compelled to share something with him. 

“You know, Jin-woo was the one who suggested I ask for your expertise." She explained, "To help, I mean.”

 Se-ju turned to looked at her, his eyebrows practically touching his hairline. “He was?”

“Yeah, I mean, he knows the game better than anyone aside from you, and he experienced what you created with that brain." She tapped the side of his head, snapping him out of his shock. "Even with everything unfortunate that’s happened, it’s still amazing.” 

Se-ju didn't even flinch at the reminder of all the damage that had been done, he just stared at her, waiting for her to go on.

“He has a lot of confidence in you,” Hee-ju laughed softly, watching the numbers climb over the doors, “So I’m sure however you decide to help, it’ll be valuable.”

She looked back over at Se-ju as their elevator stopped and the doors began to open. “So thank you, again. For this.” So much for not making a big deal out of things. 

Hee-ju stepped forward and held her hand against the doors to keep them from closing, while Se-ju continued to stare at the spot she had been standing in. He looked dumbfounded at the realization that Jin-woo not only knew so much about him, but  _believed_ in him, despite the fact that they’d never met. 

“Ready?” She asked.

Se-ju snapped out of his daze and hurried out the elevator.

“Yeah,” he said, low enough that she could hardly hear as she followed him to Yang-ju’s office.

But maybe he wasn’t saying it for her.

“Yeah, I am.” Se-ju said quietly, walking forward.

 

* * *

 

“Jung Se-ju!” An excited voice greeted them as they strode into the room. “You’re back! Amazing! Welcome! What can we do for you-- and your sister!” Choi Yang-ju amended, finally noticing Hee-ju standing behind her brother.

Se-ju wasted no time with greetings, though Yang-ju didn’t seem to mind.

“I actually... wanted to see if I could get into the system and take a look at the current specs of the game. It’s been a while and I’m, uh, really excited to start programming again.” Se-ju wrung his hands as he spoke, a habit of his when he lied, though most people chalked it up to his social anxiety. “I thought this would be a good way to start.”

Yang-ju’s eyes lit up and his feet started moving before Se-ju could even finish, “Of course! Here, use my private space!”

Yang-ju led them to a secluded office a few rooms over from where they were. It was private enough, here in the corner, despite the glass walls enclosing the space. There was a PC setup with a four-monitor display and a huge processing system, sitting on top of a slightly messy desk with a couch against the far wall of the room.

As he led them inside, his smile grew a little wistful, “This is actually where I watched CEO Yoo log into the game for the first time.” He shook his head, lost in his memories. “Ah, it was amazing,” he said, staring at the monitors, picturing that first, magical night.

Se-ju looked at Hee-ju, but stayed silent. On the way over they had talked about what to tell people.

Hee-ju wanted to keep everything under wraps for now, knowing that if too many people were aware of Jin-woo’s situation it might get messy. Se-ju agreed to keep things secret unless he thought they were getting in way over their heads. He knew how unpredictable the game could be and that the two of them might not be enough to solve whatever was going on.

Yang-ju waved his hands out in from of him, as if shooing away the memories, and turned back to the siblings with a bright smile. “It’s so nice that your sister is interested in what we do here too. You’ll find it’s quite fascinating,” he said, wagging his finger and leading them over to the computer station that was already powered up, ready to go.

“Anyways, I’m not in here much anymore. I spend all my time in the main programming area overseeing the employees there. So feel free to come and go as you please.” He gave a little fist pump to Se-ju as if to say, _Fighting_ _!_ before turning to leave them as much privacy as the transparent walls were able to provide.

Hee-ju politely smiled and gave a small bow to Yang-ju as he exited, but Se-ju was already walking towards the chair, backpack dropping to the floor and fingers typing before he even sat down. As he opened up the game’s servers, she walked over to stand beside him as he worked, trying not to hover but not knowing what else to do. The screen in front of her was full of letters and characters that were still unfamiliar to her even after all these years spent watching Se-ju code.

She saw one screen that looked like a map of the city with a bunch of little blue blinking dots scattered throughout.

“These are all the players currently logged into the game,” Se-ju explained. He typed a command into the computer and the map zoomed in, honing in on a particular neighborhood in Seoul. Hee-ju noticed there were much fewer dots now.

“What’s the name of the church again?” He asked.

“Sacheondong,” Hee-ju responded, watching as Se-ju entered the coordinates and witnessed the map pinpoint the exact area she mentioned. The church building and the park that surrounded it showed up on the screen.

Except... now there were no dots at all.

Se-ju must have noticed at the same she did because the moment she turned her head to look at him his forehead creased and his eyes darted around the monitor like he wasn’t sure what he was seeing.

He started muttering under his breath as he typed some more and the map zoomed back out. Se-ju switched over to the monitor displaying rows of code and attempted something else. “You said he’s not able to leave. Even if he’s in the instance dungeon I should still _see_ him. So why isn’t he…?” Se-ju typed furiously, his frustration evident. 

There was nothing Se-ju hated more than not knowing something. It usually wasn’t a problem as confusion wasn’t an emotion he felt very often.

“I know you said his user ID was stripped, but his other information and player details make him trackable. I should--”

 

**_*ERROR 404: NOT FOUND*_ **

 

Se-ju’s hands paused as the angry-looking message obstructed his line of sight.

“What does that mean?” Hee-ju asked worriedly, heart pounding at the sight of the error. She didn’t know much, but she knew it wasn’t good.

Se-ju was speechless. When a moment passed and he finally spoke, his voice was incredulous.

“He’s not…” Se-ju’s voice dropped to a whisper. Hee-ju had to move closer in order to hear the rest. “He’s not in the game, noona.” He shook his head at the error message refusing to disappear.

“What do you mean he’s not in the game? That’s _exactly_ the problem. He’s in there and we need to get him out!” She didn’t want to yell and risk drawing Yang-ju back into the room, but she didn’t understand what Se-ju was saying. She had seen Jin-woo with her own eyes. Had felt him. _He was in there._

Se-ju didn’t even blink at her outburst. “According to the system... Yoo Jin-woo doesn’t exist. There’s no record of him as a player, NPC or anything else.”

He spun in the chair to look at his sister, hands shaking slightly, “Not currently, and not ever.”

Hee-ju was at a loss. She shook her head, hopelessly confused. How could that be true when both her and Se-ju knew otherwise?

“Se-ju…” she pleaded. She wasn’t even sure what she was asking for, just that she was completely out of her depth here.

He stared at her, knowing this wasn’t making sense. He closed his eyes, thinking.

“The…” he paused, his low voice somehow sounding both sure and incredulous at the same time, “ _only_ thing. I can think of-- and I have no idea if I’m right about this because I have no idea about anything anymore when it comes to this game--” he took a deep breath, “is that the reason Yoo Jin-woo is trapped is because he’s in some kind of... limbo."

Se-ju opened his eyes, judging her reaction. When she stayed silent, listening, he went on.

“He was rebooted along with the rest of the game and is now present in Version 2,” Se-ju explained. Hee-ju appreciated that he didn’t question her again, he simply took her words as fact.

“But I think he’s still a part of the original game too. Everything from that version got deleted _except_ _him._ Because he couldn’t be. So essentially, he’s the only remaining piece of Version 1. It’s like the game doesn’t know what to do with him. He’s not a bug anymore, not exactly… he’s just, an anomaly...” Se-ju trailed off, playing back the words in his head and likely hearing how unbelievable it all sounded.

How impossible.

But he didn’t take any of it back. Hee-ju knew her brother truly thought that’s what was happening to Jin-woo.

She thought back to her conversation with Jin-woo and the faith he had in her brother. Faith she also needed to have. Se-ju was brilliant. His mind had a way of piecing things together in a way other people's couldn’t-- and he did it before you even finished understanding the question.

And quite honestly, this was not the craziest thing to happen to them over the past couple years.

Hee-ju spoke, breaking the heavy silence between them. “That makes… sense." She said, nodding. "Or as much sense as it can make, anyway.” Jin-woo had always approached the game in a way that was different than it was intended to be played. So it did make sense that this part of his journey would be different as well.

“But then, if that’s the case,” Hee-ju hesitated to ask the question, afraid of the answer, but even more afraid of not having one.

“How will we be able to get him out?”

Se-ju paused for a long moment. He turned back to the desk, eyeing the monitors displaying his creation.

“He needs a champion.”

Hee-ju waited for her brother to explain.

Se-ju continued to stare at the monitors. He focused on the screen displaying the map of Seoul and all the little lights indicating that someone was playing right now. 

He spoke, though his eyes never moved from the game. “When I created the game, the world and the technology and the mythos -- I'm not trying to brag when I tell you I know how creative my world-building was. But at its core, the game is simple. You play to win.”

She could see that Se-ju was no longer seeing the screen, but was lost in his memories. Thinking of all the work he put into bringing his thoughts and dreams to life.

“And to win… you complete the quest." 

Se-ju got up from his seat in front of the computers and moved away towards the couch, like he couldn’t bear to be in front of the game anymore. The game that he made, but that had morphed into something he no longer recognized.

Hee-ju went to sit by him as he continued. “When Yoo Jin-woo played the game for the first time, he was just like everyone else. Or, he should’ve been. Somewhere along the way, whether it was a glitch--or magic-- I don’t know that anyone will ever be able to explain what happened, but-- he changed the game. When he was fighting his friend, or maybe when he was searching for me, bending rules, things shifted. The only thing that didn’t change was the quest." 

Hee-ju followed his train of thought. “So you’re saying… in the same way Jin-woo went into the game, climbed levels and went on your quest in order to save you-- someone has to do the same for him?”

Se-ju nodded. “That’s what I think. But things could always change. He got stuck as a result of saving me, what if someone gets stuck trying to save him? What if it’s an endless cycle?” His eyes were wide as he considered the possibility no one would ever truly be free from this game.

Hee-ju tried to calm him down -- he couldn’t think like that if they were really going to do this. If she was really going to do this. “Hey,” she soothed. “Don’t say that. You said it yourself, he’s the only thing left from that first, twisted version of the game. The relaunch ensured that everything is safe now. We can fix this,” she grabbed her brother's hand. “No one has to risk anything.”

“You think so?” Se-ju asked, eyes doubting, but hopeful.

She smiled, nodding. Hee-ju was used to assuaging his fears. She’d been doing it ever since she became the only one around who could.

“I do. And we finally have a plan, thanks to you. I just have to get to a high enough level that I can earn the quest, find the Key to Heaven and bring it to Emma. Simple, like you said.”

Se-ju’s mouth dropped open. “Did you say… _you?”_

Hee-ju rolled her eyes at his reaction. Such a boy.

“Well if I don’t, who will?”

  

* * *

 

“You’re going to _what?_ You plan to beat the game by completing the same quest as I did? _That’s_ what you came up with?” Jin-woo stood with his hands on his hips, a look of incredulity on his obnoxious face.

Hee-ju had known he might react badly, but this was a little much. She found herself rolling her eyes for the second time in as many hours. They were both such boys.

“Weren’t you just telling me I needed to trust in that big brain of Se-ju’s?” She folded her arms across her chest, in prime argument position. “He came up with a theory as to why you’re like this, and frankly it makes more sense than a lot of things we’ve dealt with in the past.”

Jin-woo huffed out a harsh laugh, “I don’t disagree with his logic, but was there really no other way you could come up with that didn’t involve dragging yourself right into the middle of this insane video game?” He threw up his hands and turned away only to start pacing in front of her.

He knew she was strong and capable. But he also knew firsthand what this augmented reality could do to people. He felt like his opposition was at least a little bit justified.

Hee-ju looked at him, softening inside, but refusing to show it. He was worried. She understood, but she also knew that this was it. 

With an air of finality, she said the only words he couldn't argue against. “It’s the only way.” 

Jin-woo stopped pacing and stood right in front of her, eyes locked on hers. He was searching for something.  

It was easy to not let him see the traces of doubt and anxiety in there, fueled by the fear that she couldn’t do this. Because stronger than those traces was her determination. It wasn't a question of whether she could or couldn't. All Hee-ju knew was that she was the only one who _would_. What else mattered?

Hee-ju thought back to Se-ju’s words as she left the office. 

 

_They talked a little bit more after Hee-ju’s decision to play the game._

 

_Se-ju expressed his concern, but she waved it away. She knew he had good reason to be anxious, but she needed his support more than his worry._

 

_She knew that between the two of them, it had to be her. Even though she had considered asking him to log into the game in order to see Jin-woo, she would never ask him to actually become a player again. To possibly fight and relive all those horrible memories._

 

_Hee-ju wouldn’t downplay it, though. Just because she’d made her decision didn’t mean she wasn’t nervous. She knew it would be incredibly tough._

 

_But she also knew she had the perfect mentor to train her for this journey._

 

_She stood up suddenly, feeling like she couldn't waste another second. “Do you want to go? I think I should talk to Jin-woo. I’ll drop you home first.”_

 

_Se-ju shook his head, smiling slightly. “It’s ok. I think I’m actually going to stay here for a bit. Familiarize myself with the upgrades to the game. If you’re going in… I want to help however I can. Even if it’s not much.” He looked down, shrugging._

 

_Hee-ju rushed over and hugged him. “What you’re doing is more than enough.” She looked at her little brother, heart warm, “I’m really, really proud of you, Se-ju.”_

 

_She let go and walked over to the couch. “Call me when you head out, okay?” She asked._

 

_Se-ju nodded as she gathered her stuff to leave. He called her name before she could walk out the door._

 

_His eyes were serious._

 

_"You can do this, noona. I’m proud of you too.”_

 

Jin-woo looked into Hee-ju's eyes and saw her determination. Clearly Se-ju agreed with her. He wished he could talk some sense into the kid and find out why on earth he would let his sister do something like this when he of all people should know the danger.

But her mind was made up. 

Jin-woo sighed, stepping closer to Hee-ju and raising his arms in a sign of surrender, “I’m guessing you’ll be needing my expertise then?”

Hee-ju dropped her defensive stance and smiled at him, excited. “We should get started right away.”

Jin-woo didn’t think this was going to be quite as fun as she thought it might be, but he smiled anyway. It was hard not to do around her.

“Well, I guess first thing’s first,” Jin-woo looked around the park, then back at Hee-ju's earnest expression, quirking up his eyebrow in a way that failed to hide how smug he was feeling at the moment. If this was happening then he might as well enjoy it while he could. 

Hee-ju waited with baited breath, ready to embark on a journey that would undoubtedly change their lives, and then she heard the words...

“You’re gonna need to find a bathroom.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHH so exciting. I can’t wait for Part 3. I’m still working on it, but hopefully can post within the next week or 2 so the wait isn’t as bad as this one was. 
> 
> ALSO, I just want to note that I recognize people have different opinions and interpretations on what really happened to Jin-woo and that finale. Piecing together that narrative in a way that not only made logical sense but that also fit into this story was WOW so difficult. So I left it a little bit open, because despite what our characters think, everyone only has a small piece of what really happened that night so no one really knows the truth. (hehe love unreliable narrators) Anyways, that part isn’t as important to me so much as the How We Get Jin-woo Back. yeah? So whether you think he died and was brought back by the game (a la rewarding his sacrifice) or if he was truly invisible to everyone after entering the indun (similar to Se-ju) until he gained more control after the reboot. Or if you think both of those are dumb and you want your own option. Up to you :) But regardless, hope you enjoyed this part and are looking forward to the finale-finale. ;)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow I am SO sooooo soso so so so sorry. This took waaay longer than it was supposed to. (obviously) First I was suffering from writer's block and THEN the words just wouldn't stop coming??? This was supposed to be the last part, but I got to 20k before I realized I had to break it up. Part 3 ended up being twice as long as Parts 1 and 2 combined. Which blows my mind. 
> 
> So anyways, I wanted to post this when I was actually almost done with the whole thing so you all wouldn't have to wait another (almost) 2 months hehehe so sorry about that. BUT here is part 3!!! Stuff happens. Enjoy :)

 

This was… harder than she thought it’d be.

Hee-ju stared up at the Joseon soldier from her graceful position on the ground having just gotten kicked in the ribs. She contemplated the pros and cons of getting back up to finish the fight.

 _Pro_ _:_ The ground was not that uncomfortable. She could probably take a nice nap right here in the dirt.

 _Con:_ The dirt was definitely not part of this augmented reality, meaning she would have another t-shirt to add to the growing pile of laundry she had at home. Ugh.

 _Pro_ _:_ If she stayed here long enough, her opponent might get bored and find someone else to throttle. _Major Pro_.

 _Con:_ If she--

“It’s been 7 whole seconds and you’re still on the ground? Let's go!” A voice yelled from some distance away, cutting through her pity party.

Hee-ju rolled her eyes so hard she wouldn't be surprised if she ended up with a headache. She propped one elbow up and gave Jin-woo a hard look before she saw a sword flying at her out of the corner of her eye.

She rolled over, quick, avoiding the blow that would have definitely depleted the last of her health points. She couldn’t afford _another_ loss. As much as she hated her “teacher’s” nagging, she hated disappointing him even more.

Hee-ju tiredly got to her feet, trying to remember Jin-woo’s advice as she looked for a weak spot on the character in front of her. She was able to bide her time and get a few hits in before she saw a real opening. She swiped her sword across his side and then struck his lower body while he staggered. As he fell back she aimed again for his chest and as she sliced through his robes she watched the health bar above his head drain until it was completely empty. Immediately he vanished into a thousand little airborne pixels.

With a sigh of relief, Hee-ju dropped her sword, but before it could clatter to the ground it also disintegrated into pixels, disappearing into her imaginary weapons storage where it would await the next battle.

Hee-ju took a few deep breaths to bring her heart rate back down and watched as Jin-woo closed the distance between them with his long, perfect strides. She still wasn’t used to seeing him without the limp. 

She could tell he was still in Teacher Mode by the way his eyebrows tilted in towards each other -- that was his _Getting Ready to Offer Some Constructive Criticism_ face. Even though it always sounded a little less constructive and a little more like he was ripping her self-confidence to shreds. Hee-ju sighed.

Before he could speak, she held up a hand, “Whatever it is, save it for next time. I’m already late for Min-ju’s talent show. She’ll kill me if I don’t get there in time to find the perfect seat -- I’m supposed to film everything so she can put it up on her channel to show her fans,” Hee-ju said it like she was exasperated by Min-ju’s antics, but Jin-woo knew she was proud of the way her little sister didn’t compromise her dreams.

But Jin-woo felt the the need to defend himself, knowing she had been expecting him to criticize her right away.

“I was just going to say that the _reason_ I was hounding you so hard today is because I know how important it is you get there on time,” Jin-woo explained, having known about the show after Hee-ju told him about it last week.

“Tell her good luck from me.” He smiled, imagining her on stage with all that charisma. “And tell her even though I can’t be there she better be nothing less than excellent -- I can still watch videos, you know.”

Hee-ju was touched by Jin-woo’s thoughtfulness. She hadn’t thought he would remember the performance, but then again he’d always had a soft spot for Min-ju. She smiled back at him, all the tension from the fight draining away at his words.

She nodded, already imagining Min-ju's excitement over Jin-woo seeing her perform, even if it was just a video, “I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

Jin-woo looked at her, nodding as well but not making any move to leave.

It was the same every time.

He would wait for her to leave first, since she was always the one with somewhere to go. He simply took his fill while he was able, savoring every second of her presence. His days always felt so much longer once she left him.

As Hee-ju was about to leave though, he spoke one more time. She knew it had been too easy.

“By the way, we really need to work on your form. You’re much too easy to knock down, even for someone your size.”

Hee-ju just laughed at him as she turned away and swiped her hand over her eyes -- logging out. They could practice her form tomorrow.

 

* * *

 

As Hee-ju drove to Min-ju’s school, her body reminded her of exactly how much practice it had been through over the past few weeks.

She thought about that first day, when she still had no idea what she was getting herself into. 

 

***

_Jin-woo had explained where she needed to go to find the sword. She needed that before she could do anything else._

 

_As she entered the Subway restaurant (of all places) she saw two other gamers sharing a meal. She watched one take a sip of his soda and saw his health points increase as a result._

 

_Hee-ju could admit the world of Next was incredibly innovative and an obvious game changer for the tech industry -- but she wasn’t sure if she would ever be able to get past its dangerous beginnings._

 

_Forcing herself to remain focused, Hee-ju turned down the small hallway leading to the women’s restroom. She still couldn’t believe her brother had programmed this to be every player’s first mission -- everyone had to do it before they could officially start playing the game._

 

_Though Jin-woo had actually thought it was smart._

 

_“It was quite clever of him, really. It allows for consistency across platforms -- across locations. I mean, no matter where you go there’s bound to be a bathroom in the vicinity. It’s a nice sentiment that everyone starts out at the same place. After that, it’s up to you where you go from there, and how much you achieve.”_

 

_Hee-ju walked into the ladies room, remembering Jin-woo’s words. It was up to her how far she got._

 

_She followed the arrow to the second stall which was thankfully empty. She pushed the door open slowly but saw nothing. The arrow continued to point forward. At a loss for what else to do, Hee-ju reached forward and flushed the toilet, feeling silly._

 

_Immediately a large, ancient looking sword materialized in front of her. It shocked her so much she backed away unconsciously, bumping into the stall door._

 

_The sword floated there for a moment before the words **RUSTY IRON SWORD, ATTACK 50, DURABILITY 50** appeared in front of her eyes. _

 

_Still in awe, her arm moved forward, unsure if she should just grab the weapon or what. As soon as her fingers made contact her system flooded with shock at the realism._

 

_Hee-ju had never held a real sword before, but somehow she knew this is exactly what it would feel like. Cool to the touch, but not too cold. Heavy, yet powerful._

 

_After a few seconds of her just standing in front of the toilet waving the sword around, testing the weight, it disappeared. She saw it float into the bottom corner of her screen, into her arsenal, where the rest of her weapons would also go when she eventually earned or bought them._

 

_Hee-ju stared down at her hands, now empty. Surprised laughter burst out of her as she processed what just happened, because okay yeah, that was cool._

 

_She finally understood what all the wide eyes and gaping mouths were about. She’d been in the game before, of course, multiple times even. But never… like this._

 

_Never as a player._

***

 

At first, Hee-ju had felt extremely uncomfortable fighting people in the game, real or not.

It was probably a by-product of the knowledge that even though none of this was supposed to be real, people close to her had experienced some very real consequences because of this augmented reality. Their pain had been real.

Pushing those thoughts from her mind every time she pulled out her sword was the hardest part of every battle. And the actual fighting part was _hard._

She pushed through because she had no other choice but to.

It was something she told herself a lot these days. As harsh as it sounded, those words were actually a comfort -- knowing she had no other options strengthened her resolve. There was no other outcome in this but to win.

So, she would win.

Jin-woo had noticed the way she was so hesitant at first. Initially he chalked it up to fear, but one night she asked him, straight out, _“How do you do it?”_

It was then, she thought, that he realized it wasn’t about fear for her. Sure, that was part of it. Who wouldn’t be scared when a guy is charging at you with a sharp, dangerous blade -- but he realized it was more than that.

She appreciated the way he didn’t sugarcoat it. She had made her decision and coddling wouldn’t help her or anyone else. He responded, eyes solemn, “I had no choice. In here you either survive… or you don’t.”

Hee-ju thought of all the people who hadn’t survived in here. And as selfish as it was, she was really grateful for the one who had.  

Once Hee-ju overcame that hurdle, her progress improved exponentially. She was almost ashamed to say it, but battles were exhilarating. With each subsequent fight she felt the terror less and less.

Which is why she had been overdoing it lately. As she pulled into the parking lot of Min-ju’s school, she thought about how she’d been going out at night, in the morning, whenever she wasn’t with Jin-woo -- fighting on her own.

He didn’t know it yet, but she doubted she could hide it from him for long when she suddenly jumped 5 levels after only practicing with him for 2 days. She would worry about that later though.

Hee-ju hurried into the building, looking for the seats Se-ju saved for them. With all her training, she hadn’t been around much lately and she felt bad. Both Se-ju and Min-ju had really stepped up in her absence, and she wanted them to know how much she appreciated it.

Spotting her brother waving at her from the 7th row in the middle section, she started forward, smiling, ready to support her sister. Hee-ju needed them to know that they could still count on her.

 

* * *

 

Every time Hee-ju thought she was getting the hang of things, they got harder.

 _I guess that’s the point of leveling up_ , she thought as she fought two soldiers, feeling decently confident in her skills.

It was probably past 10pm -- Hee-ju knew this because she had left Jin-woo at 9 and she’d been out here fighting for at least an hour. They had gotten her to level 25 tonight, so Jin-woo felt she deserved a break for her progress.

He had smiled at her with pride as he told her to go home and rest.

 _Rest_.

That sounded really good right about now -- Hee-ju thought as she spun and sliced one of her opponents across the leg, leaving herself open for a punch to the gut -- but reaching level 25 meant she was halfway to 50. And that made her restless.

She didn’t want a break. She wanted to keep going.

But she had a feeling Jin-woo wouldn’t be so agreeable.

A few days ago, after Min-ju’s show, Jin-woo had finally asked how she was jumping levels when she was away from him.

_Are you practicing outside of our training together?_

He had asked so bluntly. She wasn't sure if he just didn’t know how to beat around the bush or thought it was a waste of his precious time. Definitely a CEO habit.

 

_Hee-ju laughed off his accusation. She definitely was, but she wasn’t going to tell him that._

_“You think I love getting beat up so much that after I leave here, I go home and do it without you?” She said, laying on the sarcasm._

_Before she lost her nerve, she gave him the excuse she had come up with. “I’ve actually been working with Se-ju and Yang-ju at the company. They found a way to create these simulation battles that allow me to stack my experience points and skills without any of the damage.” She had thought long and hard about excuses, and this one sounded at least halfway plausible to her own ears. Besides, there was no way he could confirm. He would just have to trust her._

_“It’s kind of like a one-way fight -- super helpful in our case, I would think.” Hee-ju left no room for him to contradict her, even though she knew it sounded a little too good to be true._

_Jin-woo just stared at her for a moment, probably wondering why she hadn’t told him this sooner. For that, she had no excuse, so she prayed he wouldn’t ask._

_But after a moment, he simply nodded. “That’s actually quite useful, I’m glad you guys are getting help from more than just each other.”_

_Jin-woo actually sounded relieved, and she realized he was worried about her and Se-ju. Having the backing of the company definitely lessened the burden on them -- or it would, if they did._

_Hee-ju immediately felt guilty for lying. That’s why he believed her, she thought. Because he wanted to. Knowing that she could make progress without getting hurt was incredibly comforting for Jin-woo to hear. Of course they still needed these trainings to prepare for the final quest, but it was a convenient way to speed along the process._

_Hee-ju’s lips tilted up, but she couldn’t force the whole smile. She didn’t like hiding things from him._

_“Yeah, it’s been great.”_

 

Coming up with the excuse made her wish they actually _had_ asked Yang-ju for help and that he and Se-ju had actually created such a brilliant thing. It would have really come in handy right now.

After what felt like hours, Hee-ju finally got an attack in, stabbing one of her enemies in the shoulder and then slicing his neck. She flinched, seeing the blood. The game was a little too realistic sometimes.

Her other opponent didn’t hesitate to charge forward, but the thought that he was now the only thing between her and sleep meant she was much more determined to finish this.

With a kick to the knee and two strikes across his chest, he followed his friend back to wherever they came from. Hee-ju dropped her sword and tried to catch her breath, feeling winded after the nonstop fighting.

 

**_YOU ARE NOW LEVEL 27_ **

 

The notification spread across her vision. That meant she had jumped 2 levels tonight. It was good, but it still didn’t feel like enough.

 

**EMMA: LEVEL 27, ATTACK 1,030 DEFENSE 1,050**

**NEW WEAPONS AVAILABLE**

 

Her stats scrolled across her line of sight as she read them absently. She had found Jin-woo over 3 weeks ago and she wasn’t even to level 30 yet. At this rate it would be another few months before was able to complete the quest. And everyone knew the higher you climbed, the harder it was to reach the next level.

Hee-ju knew that kind of thinking would cripple her motivation, though -- not to mention she was giving herself a headache. So she decided to just head home and think about everything tomorrow when she met with Jin-woo to train. Again.

As Hee-ju drove home, her eyes drooped, and she wanted nothing more than to climb into her nice warm bed. But her stomach reminded her that dinner had been hours ago. She was starving.

Parking on the street in front of her home, Hee-ju saw the light in the living room still on and wondered who was awake. She climbed the steps and dug around for her key to unlock the door, but before she could, it swung open to reveal her younger sister, bouncing with energy even at the late hour.

“Unni! You’re home!” Min-ju exclaimed over the sound of Hee-ju shushing her, knowing their grandma was already asleep and Se-ju probably working in his room. “Would you stop yelling? It’s almost 11 o’clock at night!” Hee-ju yelled as quietly as she could.

“Sorry!” Min-ju whisper-yelled right back.

“And why aren’t you in bed yet?” Hee-ju questioned, walking into the entryway. “You have school tomorrow. You’re not still watching dramas are you, because--”

“I was waiting up for you! I didn’t know what time you would be back but I figured you might be hungry,” Min-ju interrupted, not feeling the need to mention that she was, in fact, watching dramas while she waited.

“I’ll make you food,” she offered, smiling cutely at her big sister before turning around and marching into the kitchen. She clearly knew how to play to her strengths.

Hee-ju just dropped her stuff, too tired to argue, and honestly a little touched at her sister’s consideration. She couldn’t help but tease her, “You will? And what do you know how to cook exactly?”

Min-ju, already in the other room, just scoffed at her older sister. “Oh please, unni. It doesn't take a genius to boil water and throw some ramen in there.”

Hee-ju smiled at her cheeky response. That... actually sounded perfect right now. Following her sister into the kitchen, she watched her fill the pot with water and place it on the stove.

Min-ju was humming while she worked, clearly able to handle the task, so Hee-ju sat at the table and waited for her personal chef to finish preparing her second dinner. She closed her eyes, letting her head plop down on the table so that her cheek could rest on the cool wood. It felt good to just be still.

Min-ju watched her big sister from her spot near the stove and put the chopsticks down, coming to sit in front of her while they waited for the water to heat up.

“So how’s ahjussi?’’ Min-ju asked, just like she did every time Hee-ju got back from seeing Jin-woo.

Hee-ju chuckled, turning her head so her other cheek rested on the table, allowing her to face Min-ju. “The same as last time you asked me. And the time before that.”

“Well!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air, "I feel so bad for him, he must be bored to death in there without anyone to hang out with,” Min-ju placed her hand under chin and stared off to the side, probably imagining the horror of not having a social life, rather than actually being stuck inside a video game and unable to escape. Hee-ju laughed silently.

 _Typical,_ she thought.

“ _Especially_ since you won’t even let me visit him,” Min-ju finished, eyeing her sister and throwing a pout in there for good measure.

Hee-ju didn’t even bat an eyelash. Min-ju had overheard her and Se-ju talking at the house a few days after she found Jin-woo that first time. She had been overjoyed. She said she wasn’t surprised of course, since she had known he was still alive somehow.

Min-ju immediately asked for her own pair of lenses to start playing the game and see Jin-woo, but both Hee-ju and Se-ju were against it. They didn’t want anyone getting caught in the middle of whatever was going on, not until it was all over. Min-ju had pouted for days and pleaded a million more times, but eventually she understood it was for her own safety. Even if she was still a little passive-aggressive about it sometimes.

Hee-ju promised that she would be able to see Jin-woo in person soon, she just needed to wait a little longer.

Min-ju knew how hard her sister was working herself when she was out training, so she tried to support Hee-ju as much as possible. She worked hard in school and didn’t get into trouble -- she had even started helping more around the house. Hee-ju was really proud of the way Min-ju was growing up, and it really did make things easier on Hee-ju not to have to worry.

The sound of the boiling water broke Hee-ju out of her thoughts, and she realized she had shut her eyes at some point. It appeared Min-ju was lost in her own head as well while Hee-ju zoned out, but before she could ask what her little sister was thinking about, she was already at the stove throwing the noodles and seasoning into the pot.

When Min-ju brought it over to her, she did a cute little bow, “You’ve worked hard, unni. Please enjoy this delicious meal as a reward.”

She placed it on the table, grabbing a pair of chopsticks herself. Hee-ju gave her sister a look as she watched her lean in to take the first bite. Min-ju paused, looking up guiltily, “What? You can’t finish this whole thing by yourself. Besides, I work hard too. Now eat.” She motioned to the ramen between them before slurping up her noodles.

Hee-ju couldn’t hold in her laughter at her sister’s antics. She had a point. As Hee-ju reached forward to take a bite though, Min-ju groaned. “Waaah, that’s good. I’m amazing.”

Hee-ju snorted, her food spilling onto the table before making it to her mouth. Min-ju started laughing at the mess and soon they were both hysterical.

A few moments later, they were startled out of their laughter by a sudden presence in the doorway. Se-ju’s bushy head peeked out from outside the door. He blinked at the sight of his sisters practically crying of laughter over the steaming pot in the middle of the table.

“...Do I smell ramen?”

Hee-ju smiled and motioned him forward as Min-ju squealed, going to grab another pair of chopsticks as she chattered on about her brother having to try her very first attempt at cooking. She looked at them both, her younger siblings, and tried to imagine what their trio must look like right now.

Even though it was midnight and she had been out training for hours, Hee-ju suddenly felt more energized than she'd been all day.

 

* * *

 

 

A week later, Jin-woo finally decides he’s tired of sitting back and watching.

Hee-ju has been making fast progress, but there’s only so much you can learn fighting NPC after NPC. He watches as she fights alongside a few newbies, his face smug seeing how she’s obviously more skilled than they are.

Jin-woo would like to take credit, but if he's a good teacher then Hee-ju's an even better student. 

He’s invisible to everyone but her, of course. They have no idea he’s watching the fight.

Hee-ju realized a few days ago she actually earned extra points by fighting with teams in the game and defending other players. Jin-woo couldn’t remember if he ever noticed that feature and wondered if that was new or something Se-ju had programmed into the game early on. Regardless, it was smart. A nice way to encourage alliances.

Idealistic, but nice.

So, after some time, when they finally defeated the group of Joseon assassins, Jin-woo became restless.

He watched Hee-ju walk over after shaking off the other players begging for her to join their group. She had no time for attachments, much to their disappointment.

She looked tired... though that wasn’t uncommon these days. Jin-woo noticed that she always looked tired when she was with him. It was simply a matter of how much more tired she became over the course of their time together.

So, even though she looked tired right now, Jin-woo knew from experience that she had a lot more in her.

Which is why made a suggestion.

“Let’s spar,” he said, without preamble.

Hee-ju paused mid-step and a look of confusion passed over her face as she processed his words. It quickly morphed into one of skepticism, as though she didn’t believe he would actually fight her for fun.

And he wouldn’t usually, of course, but right now he just needed to _do_ something. And, his logical side reasoned, it could be mutually beneficial for them both.  

When Jin-woo stayed silent, her skepticism turned into a spark of excitement. He was serious. 

“Really?” She asked, wanting to be sure. Her skepticism wouldn’t let the excitement win out just yet.

Jin-woo wanted to laugh at her reaction -- he had no idea she’d been wanting to duel with him this badly. “Sure,” he answered. “You’ve improved a lot, and I think you’re ready for something a bit more challenging.”

Hee-ju actually squealed. The way young girls squeal over K-pop idols.

If Jin-woo had known all he had to do was offer to spar with her to evoke that kind of excitement, he wouldn’t have bothered with the diamond earrings.

“Alright,” Hee-ju said, grinning ear to ear. She stepped back and pulled out her sword once more, moving her body into a defensive stance, wasting no time. “You know I’ve never actually gotten to see you in action?”

Jin-woo stepped back as well, mirroring her movements and smoothly summoning his own weapon. “Really?” He raised an eyebrow.

His stance appeared much more relaxed, though his muscles tightened in anticipation.

“Then I’ll make sure to go easy on you.” Jin-woo had just enough time to throw Hee-ju a wink before she came charging forward.

If he was surprised by her offensive strategy he didn’t show it, he merely threw his sword up against hers before she could strike. It was obvious to them both that Hee-ju didn’t have the strength Jin-woo possessed, but she was quick.

As soon as their swords clashed, she withdrew and was at him again from the side. Jin-woo had been doing this for essentially two years now, so he was able to easily block her blow. But he did show some surprise at her speed.

Of course Jin-woo had seen Hee-ju fight -- he’d been teaching her for weeks now, but experiencing it was an entirely different thing. She was fierce, he realized, more so than before, and she was focused.

Jin-woo pushed her sword away with his own and aimed for her lower body but she met his sword there as well. They struck each other simultaneously -- their swords clanging against each other once, twice, three times. They held them there crossed over each other in the shape of an X, waiting, chests heaving.

Hee-ju took this moment to catch her breath. His strikes were a lot more powerful than she was used to defending against. Jin-woo was the strongest player she’d ever fought, so it made sense. But she couldn't believe how winded she was already feeling.

Jin-woo stared into her eyes, trying to assess where she was at and anticipate where she would strike next. He had taught her, sure, but her mind was sharper than others gave her credit for. She took everything he gave and morphed it into a strategy of battle that was uniquely hers.

Hee-ju knew Jin-woo was assessing her, after all he had been the one to teach her how to find moments like these in order to regroup and strategize, so she took advantage. She deliberately let her eyes flicker down to his lower left side -- where his limp would be if he still had it -- and then spun around to strike his right shoulder, drawing first blood.

Jin-woo had seen her eyes flicker and was already stepping back to dodge her attack but was shocked when he felt the cool metal slice a shallow line across his shoulder instead of his leg.

She had gone for the opposite side and successfully gotten the first hit in.

Hee-ju only had a moment to feel guilty for causing him pain -- real or not, because in his present state everything here was real -- before it vanished at the sound of his surprised chuckles. 

They stood a few feet apart as she had immediately retreated, but she could see the grin on his face as clearly as the sparkle in his eyes. “You tricked me,” he said, not quite a question. Hee-ju wanted to point out that he sounded a lot happier about that fact than any sane person should. “You knew I was watching and you made me believe you were going for my leg--” Jin-woo couldn’t even finish, interrupted by his own bark of laughter. She could be wrong but his voice kind of sounded like it was filled with pride… for her?

Hee-ju was amused by his ridiculous reaction, but not at all surprised. She shrugged a bit, knowing it was exactly the type of tactic he would’ve used in her position.

“I learn from the best,” she said, throwing a wink at him, mimicking his own gesture from the beginning of their fight.

Jin-woo’s smile softened as he took a step forward, swinging his sword, eyes mischievous.

“Too bad that move will only work once.”

Jin-woo was the one to charge this time, swiping his blade in quick succession. Hee-ju was quick but the constant assault was making her arms burn. His fifth swipe caused the sword to fly out of her hand, leaving her defenseless.

He smiled, looking like he’d won, but Hee-ju, always full of surprises, decided she wasn’t done yet.

She aimed a kick at his side.

“Ah!” Jin-woo exclaimed, holding his torso, looking shocked more than anything. “Did you just _kick_ me?”

Hee-ju laughed. She knew it hadn't even hurt that bad. Nothing like a sword could inflict.

Jin-woo, amused by her spunk, dropped his own sword which dissolved immediately.

So she wanted to do it like this, then.  

“You know physical contact is prohibited in the game, right?” He asked, circling her. She spun as well, following him, making sure to never have her back turned.

Hee-ju had expected to see the warning flash across her vision when she kicked him, but nothing appeared.

“Not with you, apparently.” The game was all sorts of twisted when it came to Yoo Jin-woo.

“Alright then,” Jin-woo said, stopping to stand in front of her.

“Let’s do this.”

They started fighting hand-to-hand -- kicks flying, punches being thrown -- and Jin-woo knew at this point it wasn’t about training for them, but about expelling all the stress and tension that had been building.

And it felt… good. To simply spar without the intention of hurting someone because there was no need to protect yourself. It was freeing.

Hee-ju knew her punches weren’t as effective as his, but she aimed for his side anyway, only to be met with his hand on her wrist twisting until her back somehow ended up against his front.

Jin-woo would be lying if he said he didn’t hold the pose a second longer than necessary. But unfortunately that extra second was all Hee-ju needed to slide her foot behind his and trip him up -- though he refused to go down without her. They ended up in a tumbled mess on the floor, limbs so tangled she had no idea where she ended and he began.

Hee-ju couldn't remember who started laughing first but soon they were both cracking up at this entire insane situation.

She had ended up on top of Jin-woo, her elbows digging painfully into his chest as she tried to get her bearings while still fighting off giggles. He didn’t seem to mind though. Her weight felt like the most comfortable burden he’d ever been dealt.

He took the opportunity to flip them, smoothly rolling them over so he ended up on top -- though he made sure to rest his weight on his forearms to keep from crushing her small body.

However that didn’t mean Hee-ju couldn’t feel the entire length of his warmth covering her from shoulder to thigh. Her mind felt like it was short-circuiting in response to the burst of awareness that flooded through her. That uncontrollable laughter from before was suddenly nowhere to be found.

When had their faces gotten so close?

Hee-ju couldn’t focus on anything else but the sensation of Jin-woo’s hair falling against her forehead, his nose brushing her own, his breath mingling with hers.

Jin-woo allowed himself the luxury of letting his eyes wander over Hee-ju’s features. He hadn’t been this close to her since the night he almost kissed her in the park. And… by the way Hee-ju’s eyelashes were fluttering Jin-woo knew she was thinking the same thing.

Every time Jin-woo was around the small woman beneath him, he couldn’t help but feel like she had her own gravitational pull. If you got too close, you could get sucked right in.

He took a deep breath and tried to focus… which backfired when he suddenly found his lungs overwhelmed by her scent, unable to stop breathing it in. Jin-woo had no idea how she could have been fighting for hours and still smell so sweet.

She couldn’t be real, his mind argued.

His head tilted forward towards her own, against his better judgment. Like that night, it would be so easy for him to just... close the gap…

He pushed off the ground.

Jin-woo moved his body into a push-up position, bringing his body upright and leaving a surprised and disappointed Hee-ju laying there. Déjà vu hit her as she recalled that first time she had thought he was going to kiss her but didn’t.

He reached his hand down to her, intending to pull her up. _Ever the gentleman_ , she thought, rolling her eyes.

It was then that Hee-ju realized hand-to-hand combat would not work in her favor. She had to be close to Jin-woo in order to cause any real damage, and being close to him… well, clearly her focus suffered a bit under those circumstances.

She ignored his outstretched hand and rolled her body toward the bush where her sword had landed and picked it up once more. Jin-woo, sensing that this battle wasn’t over yet, summoned his own weapon, not missing a beat.

They continued to meet each other, hit for hit, blow for blow, neither one willing to let the other gain the upper hand. The two went on like that for a while, though it was evident that Jin-woo’s stamina would’ve allowed him to continue for hours. Hee-ju was already tiring. It took everything in her to bring her sword down just one more time.

Eventually, Hee-ju was the one to concede first. It was obvious by the way she dropped her sword to the ground with finality and threw her body onto the soft grass as she tried to catch her breath.

Jin-woo was out of breath as well, though he remained standing, watching her for a moment to make sure she was really fine. Her laughter as she turned onto her back to face the darkening sky -- he hadn’t even realized the sun had set -- eased his concern.

He put his sword away and started forward, hesitating for a moment before dropping down onto the grass next to her. He didn’t throw himself onto the grass the way she did, but allowed his body to lean against the tree behind him, spreading his legs out in front of him, enjoying the burn his body felt from so much activity.

They stayed like that, the sounds of their heavy breathing overpowering everything else for a while, before their bodies calmed and their heartbeats slowed to a normal pace.

“That was fun,” Hee-ju murmured, eyes closed, arms spread out on the ground.

Jin-woo smiled at how relaxed she looked after everything they'd just done.

“You fought well,” he complimented her. She grinned at his words, eyes still closed, happy that the training seemed to be paying off.

“But you know,” he continued a little more firmly, “You could use a break.”

Hee-ju’s grin dimmed slightly at his tone. It didn’t sound like he was suggesting she reward herself for her hard work, more like he was chastising her for overdoing it.

Jin-woo could see how hard Hee-ju had been pushing herself lately, and tried not to feel guilty -- unsuccessfully -- that she was doing it for him. That’s why he trained so hard with her. All he could do was try to make sure she was equipped to deal with whatever she came across in this game. And to help her find peaceful moments like these.

He knew no one else would tell her to slow down, she would shut them down before they could even finish the sentence. But Hee-ju couldn’t ignore her body and the way it craved rest. She was so tired she was practically sinking into the ground like it was the softest mattress she’d ever touched. But at least she was finally _still_. Jin-woo wanted to do everything in his power to stretch this moment for as long as possible.

So, he did something he doesn’t normally do.

He talked.

“I haven't really mentioned it, but…” Jin-woo began slowly, voice just loud enough for Hee-ju to make out. “I actually spend a lot of time thinking about what I’ll do once I get out of here.” He really didn’t have much else to do when he was alone.

Hee-ju’s eyes popped open, not expecting that to be what came out of his mouth. Her head turned toward him, and he could tell she was trying really hard not to ask questions and patiently wait to see what he would say next.

Hee-ju did, however, silently note the way he spoke with such certainty -- like his freedom wasn’t a matter of  _if_ but of  _when._

“It might sound crazy but I would like to go back to the company, even after everything,” He continued, eyes staring off into the distance. She followed his gaze and realized it ended at the church on the other side of the park.

His personal prison.

Before Hee-ju could think about interjecting, Jin-woo elaborated, “Not as CEO, though. I don’t think I want that anymore.”

Finally, he looked over at Hee-ju, whose eyebrows were furrowed, wondering what he wanted if not to be the CEO of his own company.

Answering her thoughts, he went on. “I realized that J One has power. I mean, I always knew we were a powerful company, but I never thought about how we’re able to do things that truly matter.” Jin-woo knew he probably sounded ridiculous, so he tried to explain further. “Look at what we were able to do with Se-ju’s game -- the amount of people we were able to reach. I want to continue investing in ideas like that.”

“I mean,” he winced, “not like _that_ ,” Jin-woo backtracked sheepishly, not needing to explain what he meant. Hee-ju saw him pause as he tried to find the right words to continue and failed, growing frustrated with his inability to communicate his thoughts.

Hee-ju understood what he was trying to say and thought it was nothing short of amazing.

“You mean you want to invest in people and ideas as unique as Se-jui’s, and help them reach a larger audience. You want it to be more about impact -- not about profit.”

Jin-woo nodded at her, knowing she would get it.

“I’ve always invested in things I thought were brilliant, not because I saw the potential in them, but because I saw the money they could bring in. I want to shift my focus to things that really matter.” There were a lot of people out there with life-changing ideas, but no bandwidth to share them.

Hee-ju smiled at the passionate way he spoke, proud that this was something he sincerely wanted for himself.

“Of course, the bottom line will follow anyway,” Jin-woo finished confidently, unable to resist the businessman in him.

“Of course it will,” Hee-ju agreed, laughing. She was glad he was considering what lay ahead for him and that he seemed so determined. Without some type of motivation, it would be hard to remember what they were fighting for. He had things to look forward to, sure, but until now he didn’t really have a _life_ to return to. Now he had a plan.

Which meant that she had to do everything she could to make sure he got to come back and fulfill that new plan.

Jin-woo saw the look on Hee-ju’s face as she laid there and knew he wouldn’t like whatever she was thinking. He could see she was resolved. More serious.

He changed the subject, speaking suddenly, “How are Se-ju and Min-ju doing? It’s been a while since you've talked about them.”

Hee-ju brought her body into a sitting position and turned so she was facing Jin-woo, the serious look fading from her features. As he stared into her eyes he realized just how close she was.

“Has it?” She asked, apparently unaware of -- or unaffected by -- their closeness, pulling her knees up to her chest and scrunching her eyebrows as she went through their recent conversations and tried to remember the last time they’d talked about her family.

“It has,” Jin-woo confirmed. “Maybe that means you should cut back a bit and spend more time at home. I don’t want to take you away from them,” he said, frowning. He hadn’t thought they were going overboard, but if she was spending time at the company too, maybe it was getting to be too much for her.

“No, we’re not doing that.” Hee-ju shook her head vehemently. “They’ve actually been really understanding about the whole thing… and they’re a huge help at home when I can’t be there.” Hee-ju smiled fondly as she thought about the other night when Min-ju cooked the ramen that they all ended up sharing as a late-night snack.

“Honestly,” her smile turned wistful, “If my parents could see the way they’ve grown up I think they’d be really proud.”

Hee-ju was no longer looking directly at him, but he could still see the sadness creeping into her expression. Jin-woo remained silent, taking in her words. He knew what happened, of course, but he’d never heard her talk about it.

“You know,” He began, slowly, like he wasn’t sure it was his place to talk about them. “If they could see you, I think they’d be really proud too.”

 _Of course they would be_ , was what he really thought. She had taken an impossible situation and kept it from destroying what was left of her family. Not many people go through what she did and come out on the other side stronger for it.

Hee-ju finally met his eyes, like she was checking to make sure he wasn’t just throwing out platitudes to make her feel better. But he knew that she knew by now he didn’t say things he didn’t mean.

She saw the gravity there, but she shrugged him off anyway, not willing to accept the compliment. She had always thought she’d done a poor job of things after her parents passed away.

“You weren’t there after we lost them.” She said.

Hee-ju thought back to the years when it had still been so fresh -- no matter how much time had passed, the rawness refused to fade. “You didn’t see the way Se-ju closed himself off from everyone or the way Min-ju started acting out for attention. They were like polar opposites and me? I had no idea what to do.”

“But it wasn’t just you, was it?” Jin-woo offered.

“Sure, Halmoni helped out,” Hee-ju confirmed. “But when she should have been relaxing and enjoying her old age, she was running the household and doing everything at home so I could work. I couldn’t even provide for us. No matter how much I worked or how many guests we had at the hostel, it always seemed like we were just a little bit behind.” She shook her head,  remembering the night Jin-woo visited and how hopeless she had felt about their situation.

“Sometimes,” Hee-ju’s voice was softer now, “I would dream that they would come back. I remember spending so many days just running on autopilot. I spent so much of my life doing whatever I needed to get by. I kept telling myself ‘just a little bit longer’ as if I was waiting for something magical would happen to us. So I would sometimes dream that it did.”

Jin-woo had never seen her look so vulnerable.

“In those dreams, my parents, they would just show up out of the blue. As if they had never even left. And they would hug me, both of them, and tell me-- _It’s alright now. You don’t have to worry anymore, Hee-ju. We’re here now._ ”  

She sighed, and he heard her voice crack.

“Then I would wake up. And realize none of it was real. I used to wonder _How can a dream so sweet leave you waking up feeling worse than if you had a nightmare?”_

Jin-woo’s heart broke for her in that moment.

“Those were the hardest days,” she finished.

Jin-woo hated the look in her eyes as she re-lived those painful years and knew in that moment he would do anything to make sure she never looked that way again.

“I bet,” Jin-woo started, “If you were to ask your brother and sister, they would say you couldn’t have done a better job.”

“Sure, it was difficult for a while. And yes, your brother and sister dealt with their loss in different ways. But they’ve turned out incredible, haven’t they? Se-ju channeled his grief into creating something brilliant. He may have holed himself away from people for a while, but his mind is amazingly advanced for his age. And Min-ju has grown into such a bright girl, someone certainly strong enough to bounce back from the things that hurt her.”

Jin-woo was speaking so loudly that Hee-ju had to lean back a little as he went on. He was angry. Not at her or anyone else, but at the world for burdening her with so much. As awful as he felt for conning her, Jin-woo knew he was grateful for the fact that at the very least, her family would never have to struggle like that again.

His anger was bleeding into his words. Jin-woo had meant to be soothing, but he was so overcome with emotion that he couldn’t control the volume of his voice.

“And even if I hadn’t come along and complicated your life with my 10 billion won, you would have been okay. I wish you didn’t have to struggle back then, but I know you would have found a way. Because that’s what you do. Hee-ju, that’s who you are.”

Hee-ju was floored by his words. She took in his expression -- he was breathing so hard after that whole speech -- and met his strong gaze. He was looking into her eyes as if trying to make her see what he saw. But she honestly wasn’t sure that what he had said was true. She knew it took more than hard work and willpower to make something work. Sometimes, you needed a little magic too.

That’s what he had been for her family. For her.

But the way he was looking at her, the way he believed so fiercely in her -- it made her want to believe in herself too.

And she would be lying if she said his opinion didn’t matter to her. In fact, sometimes it felt like his was the _only_ one that mattered.

That night in the rain, Jin-woo told her how he had lost his own parents. He understood what it was like to grow up having to take care of yourself.

He didn’t have the added burden of siblings to care for as well, but... he was also lonelier because of it. He didn’t have anyone to share his grief with. So he bottled it up and shoved so deep sometimes even he forgot it existed.

Hee-ju thought about what it must be like growing up like that. She thought he had turned out pretty well, despite the circumstances. In fact, these past 2 years would have caused even the best of people to crumble and compromise their own… humanity.

Yet it seemed like all they did was strip away all the tired defenses Jin-woo had put up against the world, revealing the person he truly was.

And, Hee-ju knew, that person was selfless, had a strong sense of justice, and -- though he probably didn’t realize it -- was capable of great love.

“I think if your parents were still around, they would be proud too,” Hee-ju said quietly.

Now it was his turn to self-deprecate. “I’m not too sure about that,” he said, giving her a thin smile.

“I lost the family I was born with, and then the family I found…” Jin-woo shook his head, “I ruined that too.”

He didn’t need to specify who he was referring to. Hee-ju could put two and two together and knew that awful old man and his son had been like family to Jin-woo for years.

“Hey,” Hee-ju reached forward to put a comforting hand on his leg. “That was _not_ on you.”

“Well it wasn’t all them, either,” he replied.

Jin-woo thought back to when his relationship with Hyung-seok started to crumble. He knew there was resentment against his father for the way they he was treated, but Jin-woo had never wanted to do anything about it and risk the ire of the man who had filled the void left behind by his own father.

But he had thought of Hyung-seok like a brother, and cared for him like one. Unfortunately Jin-woo had been too wrapped up in his own issues to notice anyone else’s. And then Soo-jin came along and he had finally felt like he was whole again.

Like he had proved to the world it could take away everything from him, but he would thrive despite all of that. A wife, a father figure, best friends and a wildly successful company. He had risen above his tragic circumstances. _Take that, universe,_ Jin-woo had thought.

But then suddenly he had no wife and was down a best friend. In the struggle to keep everything else he had… he ended up getting betrayed by the man who was like a father to him and abandoned by his own company.

“Well, like it or not, you have a new family now.” Hee-ju said, wishing her words alone could cut through his self-pity and make all the hurtful memories disappear.

“I mean, my grandmother already loves you, obviously due to her obliviousness to… everything,” she eyed him here, trying to make light of the situation, “And I don’t think it would be an exaggeration in the slightest if I said you were Min-ju’s favorite person on the planet.” That brought a small smile to his face, at least.

“And Se-ju…” Hee-ju sighed. Jin-woo sat a little straighter, waiting to hear what she would say. He could never fight the wave of protectiveness that came over him at the mention of her younger brother. Though they’d never met, they shared a strange connection. After all, they were the only two people in the world who could understand what the other had gone through.  

“I really wish he could have met you,” Hee-ju continued.

“I mean, he already looks up to you in some ways. And sometimes it feels like you believe in him more strongly than I do.” He watched the guilt flicker over her features, but he knew sometimes being close to someone made it harder to trust in them. She had watched him grow up, she still saw him as a kid -- she had seen him at his lowest. Her struggle to let go of all that and see him for who he was now was understandable.

“Well, anyway,” Hee-ju said, breaking through his thoughts. “What I mean to say is, he’s your family now too.”

She waited for Jin-woo to look at her before she finished, “We all are.”

Her closeness combined with the heaviness of her words -- though she seemed to speak them effortlessly -- was suddenly too much for Jin-woo.

He thought back to their almost kiss at the park. About how good she had felt tucked against his side when they sat on that bench in comfortable silence. Suddenly there was nothing he wanted more than to just… be close to her. To hold her. He thought of their fight, of the way their bodies had felt pressed against each other. He had felt a flicker of desire then but it was much, much stronger now.

As Jin-woo tried to get a reign on his unexpectedly strong and definitely unwelcome feelings, Hee-ju had taken his silence as acceptance. She said what she needed to in order to comfort him, and because he didn’t refute her, she deemed her attempt successful. When he didn’t contradict her statement or try to brush it off, she shifted her body, getting up, intending to leave.

She wanted to let those words she had so easily thrown out -- _We’re you’re family now --_ linger in the air for him to dwell on. Maybe he would start to believe it.

He looked up at her as she got ready to leave, always on the move.

Jin-woo recalled a time when it was the opposite. When it felt like he was the one who was always running and she was the one trying to get him to stay. How frustrated she must have felt with him.

She was already standing when he grabbed her hand and dragged her back down, pulling her against his body. Her neck fell into his shoulder like it was meant to be there, and he wrapped his arms around her small frame, trapping her against him, unwilling to let her leave.

“What are you--” she said, shocked at the blatant display of affection.

“Just,” his words came out like breaths, “Stay like this.” He pulled her closer, one arm behind his head and one around her waist.

“For a little while.” He wished that little while would last an eternity.

Hee-ju knew there were a million other things she should be doing right now, but with his warmth surrounding her and the sound of his heartbeat under her ears -- she couldn’t name any other place she would rather be.

 

* * *

 

 

_Was it really only a week and a half ago that we were sharing a heartfelt moment, enjoying a calm evening by that tree over there?_

Jin-woo eyed the tree in question wistfully, wishing _that_ was what they were doing right now instead of... this.

“--And now you’re ignoring me? Hey! Yoo Jin-woo!” Jin-woo shifted his attention back to the small woman currently giving him an earful and sighed to himself.

“Did you hear me?” Hee-ju continued. “This isn’t fair! I’ve been working tirelessly these past few weeks to _finally_ get to Level 50 and now that I’ve made it you’re telling me I can’t use my _firearms?_ ”

Jin-woo wondered if she ever thought she would be arguing so vigorously for the right to use a Silver Eagle handgun. He was currently holding an internal debate about whether or not she actually wanted an answer to that question or if she was just going to continue her tirade. He didn’t want to ignite her ire by interrupting -- at least any more than he already had.

Jin-woo had expected a bit of backlash when he broke the news to her, but this was something else. He watched as Hee-ju began to pace, no longer satisfied with shouting in place -- she had started up again at his lack of response, meaning he’d won the debate against himself on that one -- evidently wanting to move back and forth as she aired her grievances.

He tried to feel empathetic. If he were in her position he supposed he would be feeling cheated and… probably a bit unmotivated at this point.

Actually, he probably would’ve told himself to shove it.

 _But_ , he had a good reason.

“I have a good reason.”

Hee-ju had given up on pacing and moved back in front of him, her intimidating pointer finger ready to do some serious damage to his chest. She paused at his words.

“If you’re finished with your ranting, may I please explain to you why I made this decision -- and before you guess, no it wasn’t simply to make your life difficult, unbelievable as it may seem.”

Hee-ju stepped back and dropped her finger, looking almost disappointed that she hadn’t been able to use it. And was that… a pout on her face? Jin-woo raised his eyebrows.

“Fine,” she responded, chin tilting up ever so slightly. “I’ll hear you out.” She was trying for an air of maturity, but… yeah, that was definitely a pout, Jin-woo noticed.

Hee-ju had been through so much in her life that had caused her to grow up before she was meant to. Because of that, Jin-woo often forgot how much younger she was. He wanted to laugh at her antics, but stifled it, schooling his face -- he didn’t think this was an appropriate time to let her know how adorable she was when she acted immature.

Still, he took a moment to enjoy the look on her face and was struck -- not for the first time -- at the way she could make him feel so light in the middle of all the chaos surrounding them.

“Do you remember…” Jin-woo began, already lamenting the shift in mood, “Last year, when I went into the dungeon to complete the quest? And you got me out?”

Hee-ju’s expression changed, her mood turning serious. She nodded. She had been so far away… so helpless to do anything except make that phone call.  

“When I was down there, all of my special items, automatic weapons, everything but my sword-- I wasn’t allowed to use them.”

Hee-ju gasped. She’d had no idea, he never told her--

Jin-woo kept going. “I have no idea if your quest will be the same, or even similar to mine, but what I do know is that we can’t guarantee anything. So you’re going to continue training the way you have been. Because I need you to be ready for whatever you’re going to face down there.” _Especially if I can’t be with you._

Jin-woo couldn’t bring himself to voice that last thought, although they both knew it well.

Hee-ju finally understood why he was so adamant about this. If she really couldn’t have her guns down there… well, using them now would just give her a false sense of security. She knew he wasn’t sure what the quest would entail, but Hee-ju had a feeling… she knew it would be exactly what he faced. And if her gut was right... it really would be just her and her sword down there.

Hee-ju folded her arms across her chest and nodded again. She sighed, letting go of the dream that with her new weapons things would be at least marginally easier from here on out.

“Alright.” She agreed. “No guns, just swords.”

He saw Hee-ju look around, spotting a group of players engaged in battle across the street.

“I’ll be back then,” She said, summoning her blade, “Looks like I have some more work to do.”

As she made her way over, gearing herself up for battle without the help of modern weapons, Hee-ju sighed.

Jin-woo, who could only stand back and watch, did the same.

 

***

 

Some time later, after Hee-ju had gone, Jin-woo found himself sitting on their bench thinking. He didn’t know why he referred to it as “their” bench when they had only spent one night here, but it was a night that changed both of their lives. It also made him feel closer to Hee-ju.

He thought back to the very first night she found him, all those weeks ago. He never thought they would end up here, reliving the journey of when he first played the game with Hee-ju now in the driver’s seat. She’d impressed him in so many ways recently -- not just with her physical strength but her emotional strength as well.

As he leaned back and closed his eyes, memories assaulted him of their night in the park mere days ago when they had just… talked to each other. Jin-woo had never spilled his heart so freely before. He’d never really wanted to. But she truly was the closest person to him now, and had been for a while, if he was being honest.

He thought back to one of the last things she said to him that night, the words that filled him with warmth even now.

_Your parents would be proud too._

 

_We’re you’re family now._

 

Jin-woo sat up and opened his eyes.

His body tensed, on alert. He could sense something shift in the air around him.

 

_I wish Se-ju could have met you._

 

That last sentence from Hee-ju is the one that comes to Jin-woo’s mind now. Not because it touches him that Hee-ju would want her precious younger brother to know him, look up to him, even -- though it does -- but because, if he’s not mistaken…

He’s looking at Jung Se-ju right now.

Granted, he’s only seen the kid in photos, but even after 2 years he’s still the spitting image of the young boy in the pictures. Same bushy hair and bespectacled eyes, though his face is a bit sharper -- less childlike. And the eyes behind those glasses look much more world-weary than the kid in the pictures.

The same eyes that are now looking straight at him.

Jin-woo blinks, rising from the bench unconsciously, looking at the figure standing a few feet away. He’s far away enough that Jin-woo would’ve written him off as another park-goer passing through, if not for the blue circle surrounding the spot he stands in.

The blue circle that indicates another player.

It’s his attempt to reconcile those two things that causes his mind work more slowly than usual. The sight of Jung Se-ju and the sight of a player in this game don’t compute in Jin-woo’s brain. From everything he knows about Se-ju’s situation, the last thing he ever expected was to see him enter the game again.

And yet--

“Jung Se-ju?” Jin-woo speaks first, his shocked voice barely audible even in the quiet evening.

The figure comes a few feet closer. A young man. He bows and looks up at Jin-woo.

“That’s right. And you’re… Yoo Jin-woo, right? I recognize you from, uh, the media and... stuff.” He trails off, clearly unsure of what to say. That makes two of them.

He looks nervous, but then Jin-woo considers that this might just be his baseline. Hee-ju has mentioned that her brother is a shy kid. And it’s not uncommon for brilliant people to falter a bit when it comes to social situations. It could also very well be the fact that this is the kind of situation most people will never experience.

Jin-woo understands some of his discomfort. In fact, he knows more about the young man standing in front of him than he does about people he’s known for years -- and they’ve never even met, technically. So yes, it’s... weird, to put it simply.  

Jin-woo nods absently at Se-ju’s question and wants to ask what he’s doing here, if this is even real, but the question that comes out instead is, “Is this… the first time you’ve logged in… since?”

Se-ju nods, obviously stunned himself. After all, it’s been over a year since he’s seen the world through these lenses. And now he’s face to face with Yoo Jin-woo, previous CEO of J One Holdings, and the person responsible for rescuing him from his own video game.

“What are you...” Jin-woo tries, and breaks off, clearly at a loss for words. He never imagined their first meeting to be under these circumstances. “Why did you come here?” He finishes.

Se-ju just stands there, staring at him -- somehow looking earnest and uncertain at the same time.

“To thank you.” He says simply, as if it should be obvious.

But it’s not obvious to Jin-woo why someone who was traumatized by this world and trapped for months afraid for his life would willingly come back.

Jin-woo has no idea how to respond. He still can’t even quite believe this is happening. Is this how Hee-ju felt the night she found him here?

Se-ju takes his silence as a cue to go on.

“I know Hee-ju is trying to level up so she can get you out of here, and I know that’s she’s going to do it. She can do anything she sets her mind to. I’ve seen it.” That draws a small smile from Jin-woo, hearing the way he talks about his sister.

“So I told myself it was fine if I waited. You would come back eventually and we would… meet, and I could thank you.” Se-ju stood a little taller.

“But I realized I was being a coward.”

“I’ve been afraid my entire life -- of new people, new places, of failure -- but I’ve never felt like a coward. Because those things are all rational fears, it makes sense to be afraid. My family has never made me feel like a coward.”

“And I know it makes sense for me to be afraid of this game. After-- everything.” He chokes a little bit on that last word, like it’s a woefully insufficient way to describe everything Se-ju has suffered at the hands of his own invention.

“But you… risked your _life_. You sacrificed so much to get me out of that prison. I was convinced  I would never see my family again.” Se-ju’s eyes darkened, thinking back to his hopelessness. “I was afraid they had given up on me. I was more alone than I’d ever been in my entire life, and then you-- you saved me. So I couldn’t just wait around for my sister to save you. It felt wrong. I owe you so much -- my gratitude least of all -- and the only thing stopping me was my own cowardice. So I came here to say thank you, and I’ll say it again when you make it out. And I will say it again every day afterward, because all the days I get to live again are because of you.”

Jin-woo had never felt more speechless.

Looking at Se-ju now, Jin-woo didn’t see a coward. Sure, he saw a boy who was nervous and unsure, but he also saw a fighter. Jin-woo couldn’t imagine the battle he faced just to bring himself here.

He was suddenly overcome with pride. And a feeling of being undeserving. Jin-woo knew he had indeed saved Se-ju’s life from that game, but seeing him now, fighting every instinct in his body just to be here somehow made Jin-woo feel wholly undeserving of that effort.

“You know, the bravest people are the ones who are scared and do it anyway.” Jin-woo was sincere. He had done so many “brave” things simply because of his own reckless indifference. There were few things in his life he had truly been afraid of, but did anyway. Giving the key to Emma that night in the cathedral had been one of those few.

Se-ju stared at him, wringing his hands and digesting Jin-woo’s words. Despite his powerful speech, Jin-woo could see how unnerved he was. He felt vulnerable.

“I know better than anyone what you experienced in that game. Truthfully, I wouldn’t have blamed you if you decided to never touch this world again. But you choosing to come back here, it’s probably the bravest thing you could’ve done.”

Jin-woo had no idea if he was communicating his thoughts properly, but fortunately Se-ju relaxed visibly at his words, like he needed to hear them. Like he had felt insane rather than courageous for coming back here and needed someone to confirm that he had done well.

“Do you want to…” Jin-woo floundered for a second, wondering if Se-ju’s awkwardness was contagious. He gestured to the seat on the bench next to him, “Sit?”

Jin-woo was sure the kid probably didn’t want to spend any more time in the game than he had to, but he also felt wrong sending him off.

Se-ju looked surprised at the offer but came forward anyway, unknowingly sitting in the space his sister once sat.

Jin-woo can’t help but compare the two siblings. They’re so different-- but looking at Se-ju’s profile, Jin-woo could see that underneath his anxiety is steel. He’s tougher than he looks. Just like he had told Hee-ju.  

She’d told him about what Se-ju had been up to recently, but Jin-woo suddenly wanted to hear it for himself.

“Hee-ju tells me you’ve been spending more time at the company?”  

Se-ju looked bashful as he responded, but happy. “Yeah, it’s pretty incredible what you guys have there. Just being able to tinker with the programs and gadgets helps stir up inspiration for additions to the game.” Se-ju was proud that even if he had no interest in ever playing again, he was able to participate in the programming. It was all thanks to the people who believed in him-- The employees, the players, and especially, though he might not know it, the man sitting next to him.

Se-ju spoke animatedly about what he was working on and the interesting people he’d been able to meet at the company -- appearing less anxious when his mind was focused on other things. He talked about his family and how they were all adjusting to Seoul, how it differed from his memories as a child. Jin-woo noticed that he slipped in another ‘thank you’ for making it possible for them to move back.

Jin-woo genuinely enjoyed hearing him talk, feeling privileged to be able to get a glimpse, even a small one, of who Se-ju is when he’s comfortable. Soon, there was a lull in the conversation, an easy exit for Se-ju should he want to say his goodbyes, but just when Jin-woo thought he would take it, Se-ju continued to talk.

“I’m surprised this place hasn’t driven you crazy yet,” He murmured looking around, noticing the emptiness. Not many people frequent this park, and Jin-woo stays as far as he can manage from the church.

“Well, I think I was probably already a little bit crazy when I got here, so… isolation is preferable to people hunting me down.” His light tone threw Se-ju off, but he nodded anyway, understanding that what happened changed them both. In ways that are irreparable. There would always be scars, no matter how much time passed.

“Your sister helps, though.” Jin-woo smiled as his mind traveled back to Hee-ju, never too far from her to begin with. “Having her around does wonders, honestly.”

Se-ju didn’t quite understand the bond his sister and Jin-woo shared, but he could see it was deep. And strong, if the way she’d been spending her days was any indication. “She’s always been the bright spot for everyone,” Se-ju smiled, thinking of all the people in Spain who had loved her, “the fact that she spends all her time here with you must mean you’re a bright spot for her too.”

That thought filled Jin-woo with warmth, but it also reminded him of something he never thought he would get to mention to Se-ju.

“Well, she spends a lot of it with you at the company too, I’m sure. Hee-ju told me you’ve already developed a training simulation that she’s been able to use to boost her experience points and help her level up.” Jin-woo wanted to congratulate Se-ju, knowing that must’ve been difficult to do in such a short time.  

But Se-ju looked only confused.

“What do you--what... simulation?” He asked slowly.

Jin-woo was about to repeat himself when he paused.

There was no way…

“Didn’t you and Yang-ju work together to create a gaming simulation…” Se-ju was already shaking his head, “Where she could practice and still gain points?”

“We didn’t develop anything like that. The most I’ve done is a few simple upgrades to the game itself, nothing so large-scale.” Se-ju was puzzled. This was the first he had heard of such a project.

The silence only lasted a few seconds as they both sat there in thought. But then Se-ju’s eyes widened and he turned to Jin-woo. He seemed to realize what Jin-woo had just figured out.

“Did noona tell you that?”

Jin-woo nodded, face tense. That must mean…

“She’s been training without you.” Se-ju concluded at the same time as Jin-woo.

For a second Jin-woo felt a wave of denial so strong rise up inside of him -- Hee-ju wouldn’t lie to him like that. After everything they’d been through, the way they struggled to earn each other’s trust?

He was about to deny Se-ju’s claim out loud when he was hit with a sudden memory of last year. Or rather, memories. Of all the times he’d lied to Hee-ju. But hadn’t they gotten past that? Sure, in the beginning his lies were primarily to protect himself, but then things changed between them… and then his lies were about protecting her.

He thought about the lie he fed Hee-ju’s family about Se-ju’s disappearance. Hacking his email and pretending to be traveling. He did it because he knew they would never believe the truth, but also because he was protecting them. Protecting Hee-ju. He just wanted to keep her from worrying. From laying awake at night and imagining the worst while he was out there trying to bring her brother back.

Jin-woo didn’t regret whatever peace of mind those lies had given her family. He’d do it again.

At that thought, he started to laugh incredulously, the suddenness of it making Se-ju jump.

_We really are more alike than I realized._

She wouldn’t stop training alone -- there was nothing he could do to change that. But, if he didn’t know, he couldn’t worry, couldn’t stress about her leaving him every night to find more enemies to fight.

If he didn’t know, he couldn’t feel guilty that she was doing it all for him.

Jin-woo let out a deep sigh, “She’s been training without me.” He said finally, confirming Se-ju’s statement.

Se-ju seemed to think this was genuinely funny if the amused chuckles coming from beside him were any indication. Jin-woo frowned, not seeing the humor in the situation. Se-ju composed himself and took pity on Jin-woo.

“It’s just so typical of her.” He said, explaining.

“She always does this. Things that make her life more difficult but make everyone else’s lives easier, and on top of that never tells them about it.” He chuckled like he’d seen it enough times to think it was humorous. Jin-woo didn’t share his sentiments.

“I guess you’re still learning though--” Se-ju paused, his voice quieting a bit.

“She must really like you.” He said, letting the realization sink in for them both.

The way Se-ju faced the park, it almost seemed like he was speaking to himself, Jin-woo might as well have been invisible.

“I mean, she wouldn’t be doing this if she didn’t care about you… But I think before I saw it more as an obligation to the person who saved me, a duty to do the right thing -- but now, it’s obvious that she just…” Se-ju shrugged, realizing it was much more simple than all of that.

“...Wants you back.” He finished, finally turning back to Jin-woo, who would’ve been happy to stay invisible.

Jin-woo hadn’t expected the conversation to take a turn down this path, and it made him uncomfortable. He had never planned on having this talk with the younger brother of the woman he… cared about.

Fortunately, Se-ju was more socially aware than people gave him credit for. He sensed Jin-woo’s discomfort and went to change the topic. Though he wasn’t sure if it was much of an improvement.

“Do you mind if I--” Se-ju hesitated.

“If I ask what happened when you were in the game?”

Jin-woo paused, thinking. He hadn’t known if they were going to explicitly address everything that went down during the months Se-ju was missing. He only knew his own theories and assumptions, and he was sure Se-ju only had a few pieces of the puzzle as well.  

“Sure. But only if you tell me what happened to you, too.” Maybe if they both shared, they could finally silence the countless questions that haunted them still. And maybe even receive some closure.

Se-ju looked surprised that Jin-woo wanted to know his side as well, but agreed nonetheless. If anyone could understand him, it would be the man beside him. Se-ju thought about all the times he wanted to tell someone about what was happening, to ask for help, but was afraid they would think he was insane.

Jin-woo, satisfied with the exchange, decided to just rip the band-aid.

“I guess I should start at the beginning, huh?”

He leaned back, pulling up all the memories that had been pushed aside for so long. Most of them painful, but the very beginning… it had been nothing short of magical.

“Well, that first night I logged into the game… it was like nothing else I’ve ever experienced.” Jin-woo smiled at the memory, despite everything he couldn’t deny the thrill of that very first night.

Se-ju’s eyes sparkled, seeing the CEO of J One Holdings awestruck at his own invention. Even knowing everything he accomplished, Jin-woo’s validation was something he’d never realized he craved.

Jin-woo went on, telling Se-ju the journey he went through, each discovery still fresh in his mind. When he spoke about the night he killed Hyung-seok, Se-ju looked as though he was hanging onto his every word. When Jin-woo looked into his eyes he saw Se-ju’s own memories being triggered by Jin-woo’s stories.

He glossed over the months he spent trying to recover, not wanting to add to Se-ju’s guilt.

But aside from that, he was honest.

He talked about looking for Se-ju at the train station, the eerie feeling that he couldn’t shake when no one showed. He spoke about the way he deceived Se-ju’s family, trying to keep them from knowing he had disappeared into the game. He described the way he grinded through all the levels trying to follow Se-ju’s trail and finally receiving the quest. Jin-woo recounted the battle under Alhambra Palace, and, though he fought the grief that welled up in him, Jin-woo made damn sure Se-ju knew he wouldn’t have survived without Jung-hoon.

Finally, he told him about that last night in the church. About the bugs, the key, and about Emma. Jin-woo wondered how much of what happened was by Se-ju’s own design and how much was a result of the game going mad.  

At some point Se-ju participated in the conversation instead of just listening. When Jin-woo finished recounting the details of his last night, Se-ju explained the instance dungeon theory. He shared how that’s where he had been hiding all those months. How he’d had no other choice, afraid for his life. He told him about Marco, about his betrayal, and the guilt he carried to this day knowing he was responsible for someone’s death -- no matter how unintentional. Se-ju felt lighter after describing the terror he had felt not ever knowing if it would be safe to come back out -- the helplessness.

It was difficult for both of them, reliving those memories, but telling someone who truly understood seemed to ease the burden that had been weighing on them for so long.

They felt relief.

But most of all, they finally had hope that they could actually move on from this.

They had both struggled with living in the past. Jin-woo was physically trapped, unable to move forward, forced to face the constant onslaught of memories, while Se-ju was in a trap of his own mind’s making. He was free, physically, but the guilt and fear refused to let him go, causing him to feel stuck.

But that night, they made the decision to not let their trauma steal anything more from them.

That’s how they found themselves smiling at the end of their conversation, having reached a deeper understanding of the other person. This lightness they felt, it was weird, but it also felt like something they were owed after all this time.

The guilt Se-ju had been carrying around for so long felt like an old skin he could finally shed off.

And the grief that Jin-woo couldn’t shake no matter how he tried, it eased as he saw the result of his sacrifices.

If this young man was free because of what he had to go through -- if Jung Se-ju got his family and his life and the chance to grow up back -- then Jin-woo felt it was all worth it.

Se-ju glanced down at his phone, lighting up with a text from Min-ju asking where he was. He hadn’t expected to be out for so long.

“It’s late…” Se-ju said as he stood. “I should get going.” Jin-woo nodded, he could tell how late it had gotten from the way the night had quieted down.  

Jin-woo stood as well. “Well,” he said, “Thanks for coming.” How were they supposed to be normal after the rollercoaster of emotions they just went through together?

Se-ju shook his head, a small smile on his lips, “That’s my line remember?” He said, referring to Jin-woo’s ‘thank you’.

“I don’t know how I’ll repay you, but…” He trailed off, shrugging. Jin-woo knew the kid didn’t owe him anything, but he also knew he was the type to not let it go. It must run in the family. So he decided what the hell. He had to at least try. For Hee-ju.

“Actually...” Jin-woo said, arms folded across his chest, lips tilting up mischievously on one side.

“...I do have a favor to ask.”

Se-ju grinned, feeling something like excitement buzz through him at Jin-woo’s words.

“Name it.”

 

* * *

 

A few days later it happened.

As Jin-woo watched Hee-ju fight, he had no idea where the cheesy thoughts running through his head were coming from. They sounded something like _I have never seen anything more beautiful than that woman swing a sword._ Because it was. Beautiful, that is. He watched her slice through one opponent before spinning to attack the next -- like a fiercely choreographed dance.

Jin-woo had always known she was strong, and everything they’d been doing these past few weeks only cemented that fact. But seeing such a visceral display of that strength made him feel inferior, for just a moment.

Why someone so _good_ was going through all this for him was a question he’d asked himself a thousand times since the night she found him. It made him... feel things. The kinds of things he hasn’t felt for a woman in a long, long time.

When he tried to consider how long it had been since these feelings first made an appearance -- and they _had_ been around for awhile, he just happened to be skilled at burying them any time they threatened to become too much -- his mind became overwrought with memories.

They flashed through his brain like scenes in a flip book:

 

_Their first kiss in the rain. The weight of all he’d lost threatening to rise up like a tidal wave and drown him. Until he heard her voice utter the words: I believe you. She was the only thing that had been able to break through the fog of misery surrounding him... Jin-woo could practically feel his grief and guilt washing away with the rain that night._

_Fuzzy glimpses of consciousness in a hotel room after his fall in Granada, her presence at his side a constant no matter what time it was. Each time his eyes had opened, she was there. Asleep. Reading. Whispering into her phone, probably trying to appease a family inquiring about her absence. And sometimes… she would just be watching him. Jin-woo didn't have any memories of his own mother ever watching over him when he was sick or hurt, but he imagined it would feel a lot like this. He had never felt a warmth or comfort quite like it._

 

_The night he destroyed her guitar while trying to rebuild her trust (and almost destroyed her supposed best friend). The loud crash of wood against the floor a harsh reminder that rebuilding wasn't one of his strengths -- though breaking things certainly was. Jin-woo would never understand why she had chosen to trust in him when all he did was bring her pain._

_The sight of her worried face (she was always so worried for him, even in the beginning) as his injured body lay slouched against a bench outside the hospital in Granada. He had been waiting for that fatal blow at the hand of a ghost, when suddenly her face appeared in front of him, miraculously blocking out everything with the power to hurt him. He would soon learn that was one of her own strengths._

_Their last few minutes together, frozen in time. In that moment, all he knew was that he needed to be close to her for a little while longer, consequences be damned._

He wouldn’t lie and say it was love at first sight. Jin-woo knew he wasn’t thinking of much that night besides the excitement of meeting the genius behind his billion-dollar investment. At best, their first impressions could probably be described as one of mutual irritation.

Even if he had found the way she insulted him to be kind of adorable.

But then he found out her story.

He was a man with a lot resources, so it didn’t take long for his people to come back with a folder of information that hit a little too close to home. He, like Hee-ju, had lost his parents at a young age. But he had grown up learning how to bury his grief all the while ensuring that he became so successful he would never again need to be taken care of by someone else. She grew up facing her grief every single day knowing that _she_ was the reason why her parents had come to this foreign country in the first place. She grew up learning how to raise a family-- how to _be_ the person that took care of others -- how to make a living and run a business.

Jin-woo could hardly remember the time in his life when he was ignorant enough to accuse her of being _lazy_.

He knew that he had offered Hee-ju that 10 billion won under false pretenses. He was selfish and had only wanted to outdo the man who took so much away from him. But Jin-woo had also known that money was going to save her family, and forgive him if he thought he was doing her a favor.

But that was before he learned that lies -- no matter how noble -- never save anyone. If anyone had deserved the truth from him back then it was Jung Hee-ju.

Yet even with all the lies, she still believed in him… trusted him.

His attention snapped back to the fight happening a few meters away as he watched a soldier sweep Hee-ju’s legs out from under her. His fists clenched as he fought the urge to go her, not liking the sight of her struggling to catch her breath after having the wind knocked out of her.

It was pure torture watching someone you cared about in pain and not being able to step in. He didn’t know how she had been able to bear it with him.

He watched her fight to get her breathing under control and could practically hear her internal battle. _Get up. You’re stronger than this._ He saw it in her almost angry expression as she fought to simply inhale and exhale. That anger was directed at herself. He knew better than anyone what that felt like.

She rose from the ground on tired legs. Her whole body was tired. Her hair fell from her ponytail in a beautiful mess around her face, though she barely noticed. Hee-ju hesitated for only a second before she moved with a quickness that hadn’t been present before. She swiped the sword at her enemy and ducked beneath his returning blow. They danced around each other before Hee-ju finally found a weak spot and lunged for his right side. Taking advantage of his momentary shock, she brought her sword down a second time, and a third.

In her single-mindedness she was already bringing it down a fourth -- her only thought to exploit his vulnerability -- when her opponent fell and immediately disintegrated into a cloud of pixelated dust. Jin-woo could see her surprise for a moment as she came back to herself, having been on autopilot, it seemed like.

Hee-ju looked over Jin-woo, her eyes lit up with victory. She let out a yelp of excitement and he couldn’t help the proud smile that donned his face. He knew very well the rush she was feeling right now. That feeling of triumph after a particularly hard battle, when your body just wants to give up on you after all the hell it’s been through.

Hell she willingly put herself through for him.

As Jin-woo watched her make her way over to him, her steps sprightly even though he knew she wanted to collapse, he let the feelings floating around his consciousness for some time finally form one coherent thought:

_I love you._

_I love you._

_I love you._

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SIDE NOTE: can I just give a shout out to how BOMB this OST was and how perfect it is to write to? It seriously captures the mood of the drama so perfectly that all I had to do was close my eyes and I felt all the emotions so crisply. (Seriously- if you’re the type to read or write to music I highly recommend throwing this OST on as you do so.) 
> 
> Regardless, the final part will be up this week. This time I promise!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY SORRY AGAIN I KNOW I TAKE SO LONG BUT IT'S FINALLY HERE PART 4 THE FINALE YAY ENJOY

 

 

 

Before either of them know it, it’s time.

 

Weeks have passed with the same routine. Hee-ju wakes up and tries to show face at home by helping out her grandmother -- unfortunately it always involves dodging questions about why her business has been so slow recently.

 

_Maybe because I spend all my time fighting virtual enemies trying to get the man who’s been missing for over a year, the same person who saved your grandson, to come back to the real world._

 

Hee-ju just smiles at Halmoni and says business is always slower in the summer and besides, this means she can enjoy her free time.

 

By the afternoon, she’s gone. She fights at the church with Jin-woo until nightfall. In the past, he would make her leave once the sun set so she could spend the evenings at home with her family, but he’s stopped doing that.

 

Instead, he says, if she wants to stay and train extra, he won’t guilt her out of it. Hee-ju’s not sure what changed, but she’s glad. She doesn’t have to go off and fight on her own anymore, and things always tend to progress faster with Jin-woo there.

 

His only condition is that she stop using Se-ju’s virtual simulation to get her experience up since she’s already spending the extra time with him. He doesn’t want this to take over her life, after all.

 

Hee-ju doesn’t look him in the eye as she agrees, afraid he'll see the guilt over her lies and the relief that she can stop spitting them.

 

This means she’s home after dark almost every night, except for the days Jin-woo can see her physically struggling to keep up with it all. It isn’t very hard for him to convince her to cut things short on those days.

 

At home, she tries to check in on her siblings if they’re still awake, and sometimes they are. Min-ju likes to wait up for her sometimes, even though Hee-ju knows she’s just looking for an excuse to watch dramas. Some nights she has food ready as soon as Hee-ju walks through the door -- as if she has telepathy. She finds Se-ju asleep more often than not, but it’s usually slumped over his keyboard instead of in his comfortable bed. His excuse is that he’s been working grueling hours at the company lately, so much so that he has to bring his work home sometimes. Hee-ju's just glad whatever project they’ve given him is helping him find his old self again.

 

That’s how Hee-ju spends her days until the one day she sees the words _YOU ARE NOW LEVEL 90_ cross her vision.

 

Hee-ju blinks.

 

It feels like everything has been happening on autopilot for so long that the disruption surprises her. Five soldiers lay unconscious on the ground around her as she looks up at Jin-woo and knows he can see it too.

 

He doesn’t look surprised. Jin-woo looks serious, and Hee-ju realizes that while she's been thoughtlessly trudging forward, he's been acutely aware of her progress. He expected this. Jin-woo does his best to give her a proud smile, but it doesn’t reach his eyes, marred by the knowledge that things only get tougher from here.

 

They’ve already agreed to wait until Hee-ju reaches Level 95 before setting out on the quest -- Jin-woo argued that she should reach Level 100 to be as prepared as she possibly could, but Hee-ju negotiated him down halfway.

 

So even though she still has five more levels until it happens… just knowing she could see a hawk swoop overhead any minute with a scroll in its mouth... that image makes Hee-ju more restless than ever.

 

After that, her routine goes to hell.

 

Hee-ju wakes up and is out the door before anyone has a chance to even greet her. She’s too far gone to feel guilty for fighting without Jin-woo by her side. She’s much more advanced than any other player in this game right now anyways -- surely she can manage some battles without him.

 

By the time she makes it to Jin-woo, he knows what she’s been doing but doesn’t say anything. They just fight. They alternate between sparring and testing her combat skills for the quest into the dungeon and gaining experience points so she can level up enough to actually get there.

 

Sometimes, if she’s feeling particularly anxious because _they’re so close Hee-ju can practically smell the Granada air_ , she’ll train by herself afterwards as well.

 

She won’t get home until it’s so late it’s practically morning, and then she gets up the next day to do it all over again.

 

She hasn’t said anything to them, but it’s as if Se-ju and Min-ju can feel the tension. They’ve obviously noticed her new schedule and realize that _whatever_ is happening… it’s happening soon.

 

There’s one night that Hee-ju parks outside the house and can’t even bring herself to leave the car. The walk into the house is too daunting to even consider, so she lays her head against the headrest of her seat and debates just sleeping there for the night.

 

But something out of the corner of her eye startles her -- a figure approaching their house. Hee-ju sits up, exhaustion forgotten, immediately prepared to enter battle mode.

 

Her hand is already on the door handle pulling it open when she realizes the threat she was anticipating is actually her little brother. He’s walking up the front steps -- not having noticed her sitting in the car -- when he jumps at the sound of his name. He turns, not expecting her, and then looks annoyed that she frightened him.

 

“What are you doing out here, noona?” He asks. His hair is tousled like he’s been running his hands through it all evening. He looks stressed.

 

“I should be the one asking you that! What are you doing getting home so late? Where have you been?” Hee-ju demands, stalking up the steps toward him. All traces of tiredness seem to flee as she enters big-sister mode.

 

“I was just… at the company finishing up some stuff. I didn’t want to leave until it was finished. It’s no big deal,” he shrugs, having seen this Hee-ju before. He seems to realize something though as he stands up straighter and narrows his eyes.

 

“And what about _you?”_

 

Hee-ju, not used to Se-ju acting like the older sibling, sputters for a second before finding her attitude. “Where else would I have been? Training with Jin-woo.”

 

That answer seems to amuse Se-ju as he smirks at his sister and nods. If Hee-ju's brain hadn't just used up the last of her energy reserves by being angry at Se-ju, she might have heard the sarcastic  _Sure_  he mutters under breath, but it goes unnoticed.

 

“Hurry and get inside,” she tells him. “Quietly. Min-ju and Halmoni are probably asleep.” She doesn’t wait for his response before she starts toward the door, steps heavy with exhaustion, as Se-ju hangs back for just a minute, watching his sister.

 

He lets out a sigh before following.

 

* * *

 

 

The feeling was surreal.

 

_“How did you even figure out how to send me the quest?” Hee-ju asked as they stood in the park, a thick tension in the air. It was dusk -- the sun had set but it was still bright enough that everything was colored with a bluish tone. It was quiet for a Monday evening._

 

_Jin-woo shrugged, thinking back to his conversation with Se-ju just a few nights prior. He had no way of contacting him, so he was glad Se-ju had decided to pay him a visit on his own._

 

_Even if he hadn’t liked the reason._

 

_“It’s something you just kind of know when you’ve been connected with the game for so long.”_

 

_He was bullshitting, of course. The reason Se-ju had come to see him was because they both knew it was almost time. The day each of them had been working towards was almost here and instead of feeling anticipation, the only emotion Jin-woo could seem to muster up was dread._

 

_Hee-ju nodded, obviously distracted when she didn't bother to question him further. Her mind was on other things. She was going to go home and buy her ticket tonight. She could probably catch the first flight out and be in Granada by tomorrow night. In less than 48 hours… this would all be over._

 

_Jin-woo had said there was no way to change the contents of the quest, so they were operating under the assumption that it was exactly what he had received from Se-ju. He didn’t like assuming, she knew, but the scroll wouldn’t open until she was on Granada soil, so they both took that as a positive sign._

 

_After all this time, Hee-ju wasn’t sure what to say to Jin-woo. At this point they had done everything they could… all that was left was for her to leave. And from his lack of conversation, she knew he was thinking the same. But it was clear from his body language that he didn’t want to let her go just yet._

 

_“Okay well… I should, um, probably go home and get ready to leave.” Hee-ju knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep, but she would try. It was a long flight, she could catch some sleep then. She honestly didn’t think any amount of rest would cure her body of all the aches and pains she was feeling anyway._

 

_He just continued to stare at her, arms crossed over his chest, face stiff as stone and the accompanying silence deafening._

 

_Hee-ju knew he was probably just worried about her, but she had expected a “Good luck” at the very least. She deflated and began to turn away when she felt Jin-woo grab her wrist, stopping her._

 

_She looked up at him, startled, she hadn’t even seen him move._

 

_“Wait until tomorrow,” he said._

 

_She stared up at him, not understanding._

 

 _“Just 24 hours. Give yourself that much before you go,” he elaborated. “I know you’re probably already planning everything out in your head, looking for the quickest flight out of Seoul.” In any other situation she would’ve smiled at the accuracy of his words, at the way he knew her so well._ _“But you’ve been working yourself into the ground these past few weeks -- months,” he amended. “Your body has hardly had any rest and I truly wouldn’t be surprised if Min-ju’s forgotten what you look like. When was the last time you even sat down to a meal with your family?” Jin-woo knew he was starting to ramble and tried to reel himself in._

 

_“Just give yourself a day of rest. To relax and spend time with your family before you leave them to go complete an insane quest. For me. That’s all I’m asking from you.” His grip slid from her wrist down to her hand, his eyes boring into hers. “Please.”_

 

_He looked so earnest that Hee-ju didn’t have the heart to argue. As restless as she felt, as desperate as she was to just end this -- one way or another -- she couldn’t refuse him when he had that look in his eyes._

 

 _Hee-ju placed her free hand over their already clasped hands._ _“Okay,” she answered, nodding._

 

_At her words the tension drained from his body and the stoicism on his face melted into relief._

 

_Jin-woo pulled her close, startling her again, and hugged her tight like he couldn’t help himself. Just when Hee-ju was beginning to enjoy it, he pulled away._

 

_“Now go,” he said. She looked up at him confused. “Don't waste your time, I'm serious! Trust me it flies by."_

 

_Hee-ju had been in such a rush to leave before, but now that he was willing to let her go, she was reluctant. This would be the last time she saw him until after the quest, and she had no idea what things were going to be like then._

 

_She was scared._

 

_Against her wishes, Hee-ju’s eyes started to well with tears._

 

_Jin-woo was still smiling at her, clearly waiting for her to turn around and head home, but when he saw her wet eyes he moved closer, concerned._

 

_“Hey, hey, what’s wrong?” Jin-woo placed his hands on her face, one hand cupping each cheek, his worried gaze filling her blurry vision._

 

_It felt so good to have him close._

 

_Hee-ju shook her head, sniffling, “Nothing, I’m fine, I don’t know why I’m being like this.” She laughed at herself, but the tears make it sound more like a sob._

 

_“I’ve been with you everyday for months, I guess, I’m just… gonna miss you.”_

 

_Jin-woo’s eyebrows furrowed as his thumbs absently brushed the stray tears from her cheeks. His voice was soft when he responded, “I’m going to miss you too. I already do and you’re right in front of me,” He let out a low chuckle, “I don’t even know who I am anymore when it comes to you.”_

 

_He tilted her head up a little and she knew he wanted her to listen to what he was going to say next._

 

_“No matter what happens, I’m with you. I’ll be with you the whole time. If nothing else, you can trust that.”_

 

_Hee-ju closed her eyes and took a deep breath, collecting herself. She nodded, letting his words wash over her and stored them somewhere safe inside her. She knew she would need them when she was underneath that palace. But right now they made her feel strong._

 

_Jin-woo was right, she thought. If nothing else, after everything they’d been through together, Hee-ju knew she could trust him._

 

_More than anything._

 

*-*-*

 

Hee-ju was snapped out of her memories by the sound of the loudspeaker. The captain had just announced that they were beginning their descent into Granada.

 

She listened to the captain continue his landing announcements, thinking back to her conversation with Jin-woo. She hadn’t seen him after leaving the park two nights ago, but she had followed his advice.

 

Once Hee-ju calmed down, she stole one last embrace from Jin-woo and then went home to her family.

 

Though they tried to hide it for fear of being rude, everyone was surprised to see her home while it was still light out. Coincidentally, Se-ju, Min-ju and Halmoni were just about to sit down to dinner. Her grandmother was so happy to have her eat with them that it made Hee-ju feel a little bit guilty.

 

But it was nice.

 

Hee-ju did her best to block out the pressure and the anxiety from everything that was going to take place over the next two days and just enjoy the time with her family. Surrounded by her sister’s stories, her Grandma’s cooking and her brother’s laughter, she thought she managed well enough.

 

Hee-ju slept 12 hours that night. By the time she woke up, the house was empty -- though someone, Min-ju most likely, had left her some toast that probably would’ve tasted a lot better if it hadn’t been sitting out for so long. Still, she was grateful for the thoughtful gesture.  

 

Hee-ju ate a big breakfast (including the cold toast) and then went upstairs to book her flight and pack. It didn’t take too long, as she didn’t plan on being in Granada more than a day or two. She planned to pick up Min-ju from school, go grocery shopping with her Grandma, and visit Se-ju at the company before she left.

 

After that, all she could do was rest and wait. And now... here she was.

 

6 hours until her quest expired.  

 

That gave Hee-ju just enough time to bring her luggage to the inn only a few minutes drive from Alhambra. She sat on the bed in her room, taking in her surroundings.

 

It was weird, she had never stayed any place besides Hostel Bonita. But even though time had passed and she was an immeasurably different person than the Jung Hee-ju who had left Spain -- being back was strangely comforting.

 

Just breathing in the air made her feel more solid. Granada had been her home, for better or worse, for most of her life. It was familiar. That familiarity was something she needed as she prepared for what was to be an extremely _unfamiliar_ situation.

 

Hee-ju had meant to only give herself a few minutes before heading out and felt like she had already taken too long. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to try to calm her pounding heart, and as they opened she saw the game clock tortuously counting down the seconds until the quest expired.

 

**_4:07:22_ **

 

**_21…_ **

 

**_20…_ **

 

Hee-ju rose from her seat and decided she couldn’t wait any longer. She grabbed the keys to her rental car, leaving everything else but her phone behind.

 

She was ready.

  
She had to be.

 

* * *

 

  
Not even 30 minutes later, Hee-ju found herself walking the grounds of Alhambra Palace passing by tourists and guides relaying the same information she had long since memorized by heart. It was still so surreal, the fact that this had been her life not too long ago. And now she was back for an entirely different reason.

 

As Hee-ju strolled through the ancient halls, she knew she should be rushing, but she found herself unable to ignore the beauty of the architecture surrounding her. This had been her workplace practically every other day but she had always taken the sights for granted. Now it felt like she was seeing everything with new eyes. The courtyard, the stunning archways, the dusty red brick structure that held it all together.

 

It was magical.

 

She could feel the buzz under her skin, there was no other way to describe it. She could see why Se-ju had chosen this location as the climax of his player’s journey.

 

Sooner than she realized, Hee-ju ended up outside in the courtyard which was usually deserted. There was a brick structure to her left -- an entrance covering a stairway. It led to the underground prison that had been abandoned for hundreds of years. 

 

She looked around, making sure the yard was still empty of anyone who might notice her descent before quickly taking the first step down. Immediately a red net appeared before she could go further, alerting her that once she crossed into the dungeon, she wouldn’t be able to re-enter if she failed. She only had one shot... there was no turning back.

 

Hee-ju felt a jolt to her system, her mind abruptly flashing an image of Jin-woo in this exact position. She could see him hesitating at the top of these steps, much like she was, before throwing caution to the wind and descending into the dungeon. Except, she knew, unlike herself he had no idea what he would be facing down there. He only knew that Se-ju had sent him a message and this was the place it had led him.

 

Not for the first time in the past few months Hee-ju felt something like a heavy stone settle in her gut. Not only had Jin-woo fought all these obstacles alone, but he did so in the face of criticisms from a world who believed him insane. What she was experiencing right now… it was only a fraction of what Jin-woo had gone through. It humbled her and strengthened her at the same time. Hee-ju could practically feel Jin-woo behind her as each step she took brought her deeper and deeper beneath the castle.

 

But rather than fear, she felt calm.

 

Even as it grew darker the farther down she traveled, her steps were sure. Solid.

 

There was only one path now, and Hee-ju would follow it until the end.

 

As Hee-ju finally reached the last step, she had to strain her eyes to see even a few feet in front of her. She was in a dark, cave-like tunnel, the only sounds coming from whatever liquid was dripping from the ceiling around her and the echoing of her own footsteps. She made sure to tread slowly, not knowing what she would encounter going forward.

 

Hee-ju cautiously stepped forward, knowing she was moving slower than she probably should have, but her pace was the only thing she could control right now. The lost time was worth the peace of mind it gave her.

 

After a few minutes, she was blocked from continuing by the sight of a rusty, iron gate materializing right in front of her. A line of torches suddenly appeared along both sides of the cave going down farther than she was able to see.

 

**_WELCOME TO THE DUNGEON OF THE NASRID KINGDOM_ **

 

**_YOU CANNOT USE ANY WEAPONS OR ITEMS THAT ARE NOT FROM GRANADA_ **

 

Though she had expected this, it was still jarring for Hee-ju to see her weapons appear on the ground next to her. After reaching level 90, she had resorted to using her guns in order to level up faster, unable to care about anything else at that point.

 

They materialized into a messy pile beside her before disappearing into nothing just as quickly, and before she knew it the spot where they had lain was empty once more. Hee-ju felt rather than saw her sword materialize in her hand, the weight heavy and familiar. It was as if the game was trying to send her a message: _You can use this, and this only. Good luck._

 

As soon as she finished thinking the words, Hee-ju's head snapped up, triggered by the sight of the gate in front of her disappearing, a message popping up in its wake saying that she was now allowed to enter. Once she stepped forward she felt the gate reappear behind her, the loud clang frightening her against her wishes. She was thankful Jin-woo couldn’t see her right now, half-ashamed at the way she was cowering over every strange noise in the dark.

 

Hee-ju had known once she started this quest there was no going back until she finished it. She had made her choice. The gate was simply a reminder of that and she wouldn't let it rattle her. She collected herself, took a deep breath, and followed the path lit by the torches in front of her.

 

The real battle started now.

 

As she moved forward with caution, Hee-ju couldn’t shake the eerie feeling of knowing the only other person to walk this same path was Jin-woo. She couldn’t decide if that fact was comforting… or chilling, knowing how his own journey had ended.

 

Before she could contemplate further, Hee-ju saw a message pop up --

 

**AN ENEMY HAS APPEARED**

 

She felt a sudden presence behind her accompanied by the sound of feet dragging and quickly turned around, letting out a loud yelp at the sight that greeted her.

 

Hee-ju hadn’t meant to scream but she’d never seen anything more grotesque in her life. She was face to face with a literal zombie. Its face and body were decomposed, its skin was a musty gray, and its eyes were so blank that it gave her goosebumps. The zombie also happened to be armed with a dagger.

 

She quickly brought up her sword before the thing could hurt her, but it moved quickly despite its appearance. She knew her shock was causing her blows to be less effective, but she was finding it difficult to recall everything she had learned.

 

Hee-ju felt her hands trembling as she tried to attack, making her sloppy. Her opponent got a swipe in and it was incredibly painful. More painful than anything she'd been dealt back in Seoul.

 

Fortunately the pain made her more aware, and she shook herself, finding her focus. This was the first enemy she had encountered down here and she wouldn’t let it cripple her before she had even really begun. Hee-ju brought her sword down, slashing both of the corpse’s arms so it couldn’t attack anymore. She went for the legs next, causing the thing to collapse and fall to the ground.

 

She saw the numbers in the corner of her vision confirming that she had drained the zombie’s health points completely. It was… dead, again, basically. But unlike all her other opponents, the body didn’t disappear. It simply laid there, unmoving, blocking her path forward.

 

Her breath coming in harsh pants, Hee-ju stared at the figure on the ground in front of her. Carefully, she stepped over the horrid looking thing, half-afraid it would revive itself and try to attack her again. But once she stepped over safely she directed her focus forward. Hee-ju knew her senses needed to be on alert for whatever she came next.

 

As she moved deeper into the dungeon, Hee-ju encountered three more zombies. They came one after another after another. She tried to strike quickly, hoping to take them down before they even had an opportunity to attack her, but it felt like the more she killed the more came at her. Eventually she lost count.

 

Hee-ju soon realized she was wasting time trying to kill them, the process was taking too long. The quest countdown kept popping up in her line of sight, as if mocking her. She only had an hour and 22 minutes before it expired, which meant she needed a change in strategy.

 

“Think, Hee-ju, think,” she muttered to herself, seeing more figures dragging themselves towards her just a few meters ahead.

 

She decided that all she had to do was decapitate the corpses so they wouldn’t be able to follow her down the tunnel -- as long as she kept moving quickly. When they popped out at her, she had to control the impulse to jump away in fear, instead bringing her sword out and striking them down. She made sure to be constantly on the move and forbade herself from stopping for more than a few seconds at a time.

 

By the time she fought maybe her 30th zombie, she had found a rhythm that seemed effective. But Hee-ju realized she was getting tired, and she had no idea how far she had yet to go. The uncertainty was the most terrifying part of this entire experience. The combination of her dark, damp surroundings and the horrifying sounds of corpses dragging along the floor behind her had Hee-ju completely on edge.

 

She just wanted to find the key and get out.

 

Her wishful thinking distracted her enough that she almost didn't notice the second iron gate appearing just ahead. It led into a small open area that was... miraculously empty.

 

Was this the end?

 

For a moment there was only silence. Hee-ju stood there, spinning slowly, finally taking note of the three different exits that led out of the small clearing. So this wasn’t over yet, then.

 

She thought it might be a test where she would have to choose the right path, but she couldn't remember Jin-woo telling her anything about this part. Cautiously, Hee-ju decided to try walking down to the door all the way to the left when a prisoner popped out of the archway she had chosen and trudged towards her.

 

She jumped back, turning quickly to take the next exit. There was another zombie waiting there as well.

 

Hee-ju didn’t even attempt a move for the third one, already knowing what she would encounter. As they slowly crept out of their hiding places, Hee-ju realized that they weren’t alone. Multiple corpses began trickling into the no longer empty area, surrounding her. There were dozens by now. Before her emotions could catch up with the sight she was looking at and her body entered full panic mode, Hee-ju threw herself into the fray knowing she had to defend herself before the threat grew to an impossible number.

 

She swung her sword around, blindly hitting anything she could in hopes of evening out the playing field, just a bit, but knew it was futile. How was she supposed to get past this many bodies? Her eyes darted about wildly, trying to decide which exit was the smartest to try for, but she couldn't see past the gaunt faces and bony arms that seemed to be everywhere. 

 

Her arms were feeling heavy and her defenses were slowing. No matter how much she fought, it seemed like she couldn't even make a dent. She was just one person against a sea of enemies.

 

Backup would have been really great right about now.

 

Two of the zombies finally ganged up on her and grabbed onto her legs, immobilizing her. She yanked on her feed but the motion only caused her to lose balance. When she fell to the ground her face was a little too close for comfort to the corpses holding her down than she was comfortable with. She wanted to throw up from the stench of decay overwhelming her nostrils.  

 

Instead, Hee-ju steeled herself and threw up her sword to keep them as far as she could, but there was no doubt that she was panicking, unable to see a way out. Becoming desperate, she hacked away at the zombies and stumbled to her feet, hardly able to stand upright but still attacking whatever she could.

 

Hee-ju thought of Jin-woo’s words to her before she left. She thought of the comfort she had felt when his voice washed over her. He was with her, he was with her, he was with her.

 

She repeated the mantra to herself in an effort to stay positive, believing there was a way through this. But the panic wouldn't die so easily. It continued to bubble over the surface of the lid she had tried so hard to shove it into, causing her to make mistakes that left her open to injury. Hee-ju was losing hope quickly, and her vision blurred as her throat began to close up.

 

This was supposed to be a game. A fictional world where winning was fun and losing simply meant you got to try again. But Hee-ju had never played a game like this one. 

 

The wounds on her body felt so real... and everything just _hurt_ so bad.

 

She couldn’t keep fighting like this, she thought as she flinched back from yet another blow, her breathing shallow. How on earth was she supposed to--

 

“After all our months of training together, _that_ is the poor form you have to show for it?” A voice broke through the sounds of the battle, drawing Hee-ju’s attention towards the spot she had entered from just a short while ago.

 

There was no way--

 

“Honestly,” the newcomer continued, standing in the archway already swinging his own sword, the clang of metal sounding like music to her ears. He struck down four corpses before speaking again, “I think your scrawny, little annoying friend could probably do better than what I'm seeing right now.”

 

Hee-ju wanted to laugh until she cried. She would know that arrogant voice anywhere.

 

But how…?

 

Jin-woo could see her confusion even from across the heads of fifty zombies. “Fight now, explain later,” he shouted, his attention already back on the zombies in front of him.

 

Feeling more energized than she had since this began, Hee-ju nodded, not allowing her eyes to well like they wanted to at the sight of him. She stood up straighter, calling to mind all the lessons he had instilled in her, and fought.

 

Her sight was filled with zombie after zombie, but knowing that she would see him if she just kept striking them down motivated Hee-ju like nothing else. She stabbed and she swung and she kicked. Hee-ju ignored the strain of her muscles and the sweat dripping into her stinging eyes. She ignored the pain of the one attack her enemies were able to get in for every five she dealt. None of that mattered right now.

 

Nothing mattered except for him.

 

As they fought their respective opponents, the trajectory of the battle inched them both towards the middle of the circle of prisoners and soon they found themselves fighting back to back. It was as if their bodies gravitated towards each other in the midst of the chaos, in the same way they always had.

 

Hee-ju felt the warmth of Jin-woo’s back against her own, and it made her feel stronger. They worked together, bodies syncing up in a way that was unreal. When Jin-woo spun, Hee-ju followed without thought, going low when he went high. He was her second pair of eyes, ready to strike at anyone who tried to extort one of her blind spots.

 

Together, side by side, they steadily decreased the numbers until finally they were the only two standing. Their chests heaved in synchrony as they took in the slumped bodies strewn across the floor around them.

 

Jin-woo recalled the first time he had witnessed the gruesome sight along with the numbness he had felt after seeing Jung-hoon. He was glad Hee-ju didn’t have to endure this all on her own -- one glance at her battered state and he knew he had barely arrived in time.

 

Once Hee-ju felt confident none of the corpses would spring up from the ground with another attack, she turned to Jin-woo battling back her disbelief despite everything they'd just done. She honestly didn’t know what would have happened if he hadn't shown up. 

 

Jin-woo watched as Hee-ju’s eyes drank in the sight of him-- he knew once the relief faded she would have questions. But he had no idea how much time was left on the quest which meant that they needed to find the key before they did anything else.

 

He grabbed her hand, pulling her through the middle exit, not willing to waste any more time.

 

But Hee-ju was not one to remain silent. She matched his pace, even though she was still out of breath, knowing they could only be headed toward one place.

 

She had to know, though.

 

“How are you here?” Hee-ju asked.

 

Jin-woo glanced back at her and slowed his pace only the slightest bit. He knew he owed her an explanation. They would have to walk and talk.

 

“It's a bit of a long story. But, essentially, your brother’s a genius,” he said, as if that explained everything.

 

Hee-ju waited. 

 

When Jin-woo refused to say anything more she burst into laughter. She had to stop walking, laughing so hard she doubled over -- the combination of everything her body had just been through in the past 75 minutes along with the sheer delirium accompanied by Jin-woo’s presence was making it incredibly hard for her to breathe at the moment.

 

“Don’t make me resort to carrying you through an ancient dungeon, because I will if it gets us moving,” Jin-woo threatened.

 

Hee-ju would usually balk at a claim like that, but being carried actually sounded nice at the moment. Regardless, she straightened up and collected herself as best she could. "Sorry-- sorry," she apologized, allowing Jin-woo to keep walking. But she refused to let him off the hook so easily, "I promise not to slow us down, but you know I'm gonna need more of an explanation than that, right?" 

 

Jin-woo sighed, not really wanting to have this discussion right now, but never being able to deny Hee-ju anything for long.

 

“Your brother and I came up with a plan so that you wouldn’t have to complete the quest by yourself.”

 

_Your brother... and I...?  
_

 

Confused was an understatement for how Hee-ju felt in response to that explanation, but before she could utter a word, Jin-woo continued.

 

“He logged into the game one night, presumably while you were off fighting by yourself like some kind of rebel,” Jin-woo threw her a dark look that she ignored, undeterred by his disappointment since the only thing she could focus on was the first part of that sentence. “He had been working up the courage ever since the night you told him you found me. Se-ju logged in because he wanted to thank me in person for saving his life, and he didn’t want to wait until you helped me escape the game.”

 

It took everything in Hee-ju not to stop in her tracks. She settled for a jaw drop, feeling as though that was an appropriate reaction considering she was absolutely floored by Jin-woo's news. How could she not have known?

 

Her brother had overcome his trauma and entered the game in order to say two measly words to Jin-woo? She didn't know if it was the force of his guilt or his gratitude -- or a combination of the two -- that made it possible, but Hee-ju was so incredibly proud that she was at a loss for words.

 

“Before the night ended, I mentioned to Se-ju that if he was up to it, I needed his help with something. I told him how the quest would eventually lead you to end up fighting alone in Granada, but I didn’t want that. I was trapped at the cathedral in Seoul, but I wanted to be with you.” Jin-woo’s pace hurried as he spoke, as if every word out of his mouth stole another second off the clock, but Hee-ju's tired legs kept up easily, needing more than anything to hear what he would say next.

 

“He agreed, of course. I told you he was full of more steel than anyone thought.” Jin-woo would have smiled back at her in that charmingly arrogant way of his if he had any time to spare, Hee-ju was sure.

 

“Anyways, he worked day and night to research and find a way to reprogram my indun to be located here at Alhambra Palace instead of the park. At first, he couldn’t do it, because as you saw, I’m untraceable in the game. It was a dead end. But eventually, Se-ju realized that even if I wasn’t trackable through the game servers, my indun was. I may as well not have existed to the servers, but the dimension that opened up for me was visible when Se-ju entered in the right information, meaning… it was moveable. The only problem is that the indun is fluid. It’s a completely separate dimension that operates on its own wavelength that’s constantly shifting. But because Se-ju is the mastermind behind everything and created the original one for himself, he knew exactly what to look for. Eventually, he was finally able to locate it, thereby locating _me_. Then, all it took was reprogramming the coordinates, and that’s how I ended up here with you.”

 

“Cutting it a little close, clearly,” he smiled back at her, mistakenly thinking she would laugh at his joke when it was taking all her brain power to process everything he had just said.

 

Her brother truly was a genius.

 

“So then, if this doesn’t work… Are you…” _Stuck here?_ She wanted to finish. Would Se-ju be able to reprogram him back to Seoul?

 

That made Jin-woo stop, almost causing Hee-ju to slam into his back at the pace they were going. He turned around and looked down at her, “This is going to work."

 

He said it just like that. As if his word was law and everything else was just supposed to bend to his whim in order to make it happen.

 

She had missed that confidence.

 

Hee-ju nodded at him, knowing he needed her to believe the words, and Jin-woo turned around to continue their search. But his pace was noticeably slower, like he could sense that they were getting close.

 

When his footsteps slowed to a complete stop, Hee-ju had pretty much recovered her breathing, and finally noticed the strange energy permeating the air around them.

 

She stood behind Jin-woo, but she could see he was standing in front of another gate. He was frozen, staring forward, as if lost in a memory.

  
Hee-ju stepped around him, her eyes on his face, half worried but not wanting to drag him out of his own head just yet. Sometimes you needed to stop ignoring your memories and just face them.

 

She followed his gaze and turned to look into the small enclosed space -- at first glance, the area behind the gate looked empty. But as she lowered her eyes to the ground, she saw why he was unable to look away.

 

_The Key to Heaven._

 

A golden key lay on the ground, looking so innocent one would never think such a delicate item could have the power to destroy.

 

Hee-ju knelt to the ground, her hand grabbing onto the bar of the gate in front of her, the only thing keeping them from the key. She darted her eyes around the area, wondering if it would open for them. She looked down at her arm and mentally calculated whether it was long enough to reach through and simply grab the key if necessary.

 

Jin-woo finally snapped out of his trip down memory lane to confirm her own thoughts.

 

“We found it,” he said.

 

Absently, Hee-ju noted that there were less than 3 minutes until the quest expired, but strangely enough she didn’t feel anxious. She felt like this was exactly how it was supposed to happen.

 

Without thinking, Hee-ju slid her arm through one of the squares and inched toward the golden key, fingers already opening to stretch as far as they were able.

 

“Hee-ju, wait a se--”

 

But Hee-ju wasn’t listening as her fingers brushed against the cool item once, twice. She pushed her body flat against the iron bars as hard as she could in order to give herself any extra leverage and was able to successfully close her hand around the key. She was pulling it through the gate, turning to look up at Jin-woo with an excited smile and ask him what they were supposed to do next when something happened. She felt a sudden sensation in the palm of her hand so painful that her head immediately shot downard in search of the source. 

 

When Hee-ju had first grabbed the key, it was solid and cool. But as soon as she pulled it from behind the bars, the item in her fingers had started heating up rapidly, becoming so hot she almost thought it would burn her.

 

And yet, she couldn’t seem to let go. As soon as she tried to uncurl her fingers she felt a shot of electricity zoom up through the muscles of her arm and then down her spine, making her entire body buzz with the feeling of it.

 

For a moment Hee-ju was in a daze, the feeling unlike anything she’d ever experienced in her life. She was unable to focus on anything else, but she had enough awareness to register one fleeting thought in the midst of everything.  _There's no possible way this is merely the product of a video game created by my brother._

 

The sound of her own name and a rumbling from far away jolted her from her stupor, as did the feeling of something in her other hand. It was Jin-woo, taking hold of her and yelling for her attention. She looked up at him, feeling drunk all of a sudden, like everything was happening in slow motion, through a funnel.

 

His eyes weren’t excited or filled with victory like she had thought they would be, instead he looked… alarmed?

 

They started moving before she even realized what was going on. Hee-ju’s feet seemed to understand him though because she could swear she was running.

 

She clutched the key in her left hand, still unable to release her fingers from around the golden artifact. But she noticed something as they ran through the same dark tunnel they had just fought their way through.

 

Things were… falling? Rocks. Torches. Debris. The air was filled with dust so thick she knew one deep breath would set off a chain of coughs that might never cease.

 

Everything was crumbling around them as they sprinted back the way they came in search of the exit.

 

Hee-ju tried to process what was going on -- was Alhambra Palace collapsing?

 

What was happening?

 

_“On the day the Key to Heaven meets the hand of Fatima, the gate will open and the palace will crumble.”_

 

Those words floated into Hee-ju’s mind, and through her daze and the commotion of everything crumbling around her, she remembered the night she had told Jin-woo the legend of Alhambra Palace.

 

Why those words came to her now… she had no idea. She was still being frantically pulled forward by Jin-woo, but she chanced a glance down at her hand still clutching the key.

 

The closer they got to the stairwell -- the farther they traveled from the center of the dungeon -- the clearer Hee-ju’s mind felt. Soon she could see the bottom of the steps that would lead them out of danger into the light and she felt relief.

 

But Jin-woo was so focused on reaching that safe haven that he failed to notice a large chunk of rock breaking off the ceiling above his head. Hee-ju yanked her arm away from his and shoved him into the wall beside them, just missing the crash.

 

“You’re welcome,” she murmured breathlessly, looking up at his own dazed face as he stared past her at the spot where they would’ve been standing had she not saved them.

 

Jin-woo looked down at her, smiling at her tone. “Oh, so you’re with me now?” He said sarcastically, referring to the zombie-like state she seemed to have finally shed.

 

He had been the one rushing her before, but for Yoo Jin-woo there would always be time for snarky comments.

 

Hee-ju rolled her eyes and was the one to pull him forward this time, making sure her grip on the key was still secure. They rushed up the stairs, anxious to be above ground and leave the collapsing tunnel behind.

 

They sprinted up the spiral staircase and burst through the opening like madmen -- each of them taking heaving breaths, grateful for the light and fresh air.

 

Hee-ju was still trying to catch her breath but she caught Jin-woo looking around them with an expression of disbelief, spinning in a circle to take in everything. She looked up as well, wondering what had him so spooked. 

 

Hee-ju gasped. 

 

_On the day the Key to Heaven meets the hand of Fatima…_

 

Alhambra Palace was… in ruins.

 

_…The gate will open and the palace will crumble._

 

Hee-ju followed Jin-woo’s gaze and couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Surely this was a figment of the game?

 

“No,” she said out loud, finally breaking the eerie silence that had settled along with the dust of the crumbled remains.

 

She shook her head, looking at their surroundings and then at Jin-woo, “This isn’t real. There’s no way.”

 

Jin-woo, like her, seemed to forget for a moment that everything they had just experienced was supposed to have been the product of a video game. It wasn’t actually real, no matter how real it had felt.

 

But Hee-ju couldn’t tear her eyes from the sight of Jin-woo’s ripped clothes, stained with dirt and blood from their underground battle. She knew she must look just as bad, or worse even. But it was all just the game.

 

It had to be.

 

Finally, another sound broke through the silence that was beginning to grate on Hee-ju’s ears. It sounded like… a tour guide?

 

Suddenly, a group of tourists rounded the corner led by a woman with a headset in her ear and a guidebook in her hand. She spoke to the visitors, waving her hand at what should have been the grand archways enclosing the courtyard of Alhambra Palace.

 

They all looked upwards in awe and appreciation. All Hee-ju and Jin-woo could see was the dust floating through the air where the archways had once been, but had now fallen and collapsed onto the ground in front of them.

 

Hee-ju couldn’t imagine the expressions that marred their features right now, but as the group passed by them she knew from the questioning looks thrown their way that they must look crazy.

 

Jin-woo was watching the group as well, looking at them as if they were the crazy ones.

 

As the group passed, leaving them alone once more, Hee-ju heard the trailing words of the tour guide as she spoke about their next stop -- Justice Hall, where the Key to Heaven was engraved into the stone wall above the entryway.

 

_"There's a famous legend about this image. They say that on the day the Key to Heaven meets the hand of Fatima…"_

 

_…The gate will open and the palace will crumble._

 

Hee-ju finished the phrase in her own mind, finally registering the words that had been floating on the edge of her consciousness since they had been down in the dungeon. 

 

Shocked, Hee-ju looked down at her hand to find the key still nestled there safely. Her knuckles were white from holding it so tightly. But all she could think about was the legend.

 

They key was _right here_ , in her hand.

 

And the palace… well, it was as crumbled as it could get.

 

Hee-ju looked around trying to process the thoughts currently flying through her head. It couldn’t be…?

 

She knew she and Emma shared a connection -- after all, her brother had essentially designed the character after herself. But she _wasn’t_ Emma.

 

Her eyes flicked down to the userID in the corner of her vision which was suddenly impossible to ignore. She read it, over and over.

 

**LV 95: Emma**

 

Emma.

 

Hee-ju couldn’t ignore the path her mind was taking any longer, as crazy as it might be. In this game, she had learned that the craziest things were the most plausible.

 

Jin-woo watched the expression on Hee-ju’s face as she stared down at the key in her hand and at the ruins around them. She looked like she was trying to work through something, but her silence was making him nervous. Finally, he spoke up.

 

“What’s wrong?” He asked. He knew she was probably spooked -- he had never mentioned this part of the quest to her, the reason of course being that it hadn’t happened to him this way.

 

But instead of answering his question, Hee-ju looked to him suddenly, her tone urgent.

 

“I think we need to log out,” she said.

 

It was Jin-woo’s turn to look at her like she was mad. She knew he couldn’t log out. Not until they completed the quest and got the key to Emma, at least…

 

He was about to remind her of that very important detail when she stepped closer to him and grabbed his hand with her free one. She stared up at him looking more tense than he had ever seen her.

 

“Just-- I need you to trust me,” Hee-ju said to him.

 

She couldn’t explain to him, not when she was barely able to form a coherent thought herself, but she had a feeling. And since she couldn’t trust any form of logic her mind tried to conjure up, she decided to trust in her heart.

 

Jin-woo went still at her words, she could see his mind working, trying to figure out what she was thinking and failing. Finally, he nodded at her, ever so slightly.

 

She knew he had stopped trying to log out for months now, being met with disappointment after disappointment when he had tried so hard in the beginning. He looked nervous.

 

“Close your eyes,” he said.

 

Jin-woo was the one to pull his hand from hers, stepping back slightly as he said the words, clearly needing some space before they tried this. Hee-ju may have been the one calling the shots, but her nerves were eating her alive.

 

She hesitated, not wanting to look away from him, afraid of what might happen. She had followed all the rules, but how could she know if they were truly in the clear? They’d been through too much with this world, this game, for her to believe it was over yet.

 

So she took him in.

 

He was a far cry from the man who showed up at her hostel in the middle of the night with an ego bigger than the ruined palace behind him. But despite his haggard face and torn up clothes, he’d never looked better to her.

 

Hee-ju’s eyes ran frantically from the top of his head down his body and then back up to his face.

 

He could see the fear in her eyes, knowing it mirrored his own.

 

“Hee-ju,” he breathed, knowing they were both stalling. But it was the moment of truth.

 

She took another step back as well, as much as it pained her, and ripped the band aid.

 

Hee-ju shut her eyes and swiped her hand across her face -- the universal gesture for logging out -- and stood there.

 

_If he wasn’t there--_

 

Hee-ju’s mind was running on overdrive, but her body felt frozen. Her eyes refused to open, afraid of what she would see - -or wouldn't see. She wasn’t sure what she would do if this didn’t work, but if she had to start all over again… she would do it. In a heartbeat.

 

Hee-ju remained silent, trying to cheat and listen for any sounds that hinted at his presence. It was hard to do though when all she heard was the blood pounding in her eardrums, drowning out everything else.

 

She told herself to calm down and just open her damn eyes -- this game she was playing with herself wouldn’t change things -- until finally, she registered the sound of breathing.

 

And a second later, she registered the feeling of warmth. Body heat, to be specific.

 

She wrenched her eyes open and almost didn’t believe the sight in front of her.

 

It was Jin-woo.

 

Looking back at her like he couldn’t believe it either.

 

Hee-ju swiped her hand across her face again, and again, thinking it must be a fluke and she hadn’t actually logged out.

 

But there was nothing in her line of sight but him. No userID in the corner, no stats, no weapons, no messages. Just Jin-woo.

 

He stood there, looking every bit like he did that night over a year ago aside from the stunned expression on his face. His clothes were clean and there was no blood anywhere on him.

 

He tried to move forward but lost his balance when he realized his leg wasn’t functioning like it should’ve been. He glanced down in confusion and that’s when they both realized -- his limp was back. He looked back up at her and she could see the shock turn into acceptance. He knew it was real.

 

Hee-ju closed the distance between them, still not believing it despite the evidence staring her in the face. She’d had more dreams like this than she could count.

 

“Are you really--” Hee-ju stammered, eyes wide, fingers clutching at his chest as hard as they had clutched the key, unwilling to loosen her hold even the slightest bit as though she were the only thing anchoring him to this reality.  

 

“It actually wor--” suddenly her stammering mouth was occupied by something else.

 

Jin-woo couldn’t wait any longer. She was lucky she had even gotten that many words out before he gave in to the need to kiss her -- needing it more more than he needed air. His lips crashed over hers -- effectively silencing her questions and answering them at the same time. He was always a fan of doing things efficiently.

 

Jin-woo felt something shift in him as their lips met. Every doubt and fear that had been holding him back dissipated. He was doing what he wanted -- the only thing he had wanted for months -- _finally_.

 

Jin-woo circled his arms around Hee-ju’s waist, the gentle way they traveled up and down her back at odds with the desperate way his mouth moved over hers.

 

Hee-ju was stunned for a moment before responding. All their other kisses flashed through her mind, but this one blew them all out of the water. He was kissing her like it was the only thing he’d wanted to do for the past year, like it was the only way he could prove to her he was really here.

 

He would prove it for as long as he had to. Until she knew in her bones he was here with her and nothing was changing that anytime soon.

 

When Hee-ju placed her arms around his neck, she shivered at the thought that now when she touched him, she was touching a man fully entrenched in her reality. There was no longer an invisible barrier between them. They had finally jumped their last hurdle. 

 

Suddenly Jin-woo ripped his mouth away from hers long enough to stun her for the second time in as many minutes.  

 

“I love you,” he said, breathing hard, his eyes darker than she’d ever seen them.

 

Jin-woo didn’t give her time to process his words or even to reply before his mouth was back on hers, hands coming up to cup her face in order to adjust the angle. He wasn’t looking for a response from her anyway, all he’d wanted was to finally get the words off of his chest. He didn’t need anything else from her right now.

 

Just this.

 

Amidst all the conflicting emotions bombarding Hee-ju at the moment, only the feeling of delirious happiness was strong enough to overpower them all. Her arms tightened around his neck and she couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her in the middle of their kiss.

 

This was everything she had been working towards for months… playing by the rules of a game she could never hope to understand… and they had won.

 

Jin-woo leaned his forehead into hers, separating their mouths for only a moment as he graced her laughter with a responding smile, overjoyed at her own joy. He then took the opportunity to slip his tongue inside the opening created by her laughing lips, causing her to forget what had been so funny in the first place.

 

With Alhambra Palace no longer in ruins all around them, something they had both failed to notice upon logging out as they only had eyes for each other, Jin-woo guided her backwards into the pillar behind them pressing his body against hers and basking in the warmth she gave so willingly. Their chests heaved against each other as they refused to come up for air, needing nothing else in this moment but each other to survive.

 

When Hee-ju thought she might be about to pass out, Jin-woo slowed his pace and softened the kiss. He pressed his lips gently against hers once, twice, three times.

 

His mouth traveled to her cheek, “I love you,” he murmured.

 

He kissed her eyelids and whispered the words once more. “I love you,” he breathed.

 

Then he kissed her nose, making her smile. “I love you,” again, like he would never tire of saying it.

 

Hee-ju’s legs were jelly at this point and she was certain the only thing keeping her up was the sturdy stone behind her, but she would happily stay this way forever if she could.

 

And they likely would have, as it didn’t seem Jin-woo was anywhere near finished with the way his lips were traveling back down past her mouth to just under her chin, peppering kisses along her jawline.

 

“Mmmm,” he hummed, his voice nearly indistinguishable. Hee-ju suddenly felt hot. “And I _especially_ love--” he continued, before he was cut off by the sound of an audience. 

 

 _“Ay dios!_ ”  

 

Another tour group had made its way to their area without them even noticing, though neither Jin-woo nor Hee-ju was surprised at the way they had ignored everything outside of their little bubble.

 

The exclamation had come from a tourist who had spotted them just as the group was turning the corner. The tour guide turned to see what had shocked them and gaped as well. They couldn’t find it in themselves to be embarrassed, though Hee-ju couldn’t fight the blush on her face at the spectacle they had created on the grounds of a historic site.

 

Jin-woo simply laughed, unbothered by the people staring and grabbed Hee-ju by the hand, intertwining their fingers as he pulled his body away from hers.

 

“Come on,” he said.

 

“Let’s go home.”

 

 

* * *

 

_(9 days later)_

 

As Hee-ju carried the steaming pot of soup to the table, careful to not burn herself, she thought about the whirlwind of the past week. She had saved Jin-woo from his prison and they had returned to Seoul, causing a bigger upset than she had thought they would.

 

It was still hard to believe they were back... even her body was beginning to forget the harsh few months she had put it through. Every day the soreness faded more and more, one of the last lingering reminders of this insane journey.  

 

She thought back to the day they had left Granada.

 

_***_

 

_Since Jin-woo didn’t have his cane, they took their time walking back to the car. His legs had apparently forgotten what it was like to have limited functionality, which meant Hee-ju found herself being used as a substitute crutch. Not that she minded._

 

_As they trudged along, Hee-ju was still trying to recover from the kisses they had shared just minutes ago, but Jin-woo was making it difficult for her to focus on anything -- he couldn't stop laughing at their situation, and she was beginning to think he had finally gone mad. One quick turn of her head to shoot him an irritated look only resulted in the sight of his laughing lips stealing her attention._

 

_“I never thought I would be so happy to be a cripple,” he joked, arm slung around her shoulder for security._

 

_Hee-ju laughed with him halfheartedly, glancing away from his mouth, her mind unable to focus on much else than the feeling of her own swollen lips._

 

_Jin-woo looked over at her and was amused by the pink still coloring her face and neck._

 

_“Though, I have to say there are other things I’m much happier about doing now that I’m back,” he said, voice low, his words causing the pink tint on Hee-ju’s cheeks to bloom into a bright red._

 

_Hee-ju blamed him for the road her thoughts had taken knowing he only said those things to get a reaction out of her. She threw his arm off her shoulder and walked the rest of the way to the car without him._

 

_“Just get in,” she huffed as she threw herself into the driver’s seat, embarrassed that she was so easily affected by him. She rolled her eyes as she shut the door on the sound of his laughter from outside and felt no sympathy as she watched him limp towards the passenger’s side._

 

_They got back to the hotel room she had rented and immediately worked on booking his flight back to Seoul. She knew with nothing to his name right now -- no passport, no ID, no documents -- they would have a hard time getting him back home, but they would make it work. Compared to every other obstacle they'd faced, this was merely a pebble in the path._

 

_Hee-ju stopped typing on her laptop and blinked, realizing something._

 

_The hardest part of their journey was now over, surreal as it was._

 

_Jin-woo sat down on the bed and looked around the small room, taking a deep breath. His only surroundings for the past year had consisted of green grass or high church ceilings, so being back in the real world must have been somewhat disorienting._

 

_“We should call Se-ju,” Hee-ju said, watching the way he took in everything around them._

 

_At her suggestion he focused his attention back on her, and she could see the way his shoulders relaxed, anchoring himself in her familiarity. He nodded._

 

_Hee-ju felt the excitement bubbling inside her as she dialed her brother's number and sat down next to Jin-woo with the phone on speaker. Their shoulders brushed and Hee-ju reveled in the feeling of him next to her. She knew she wouldn’t get used to it any time soon._

 

_“Noona?!” Se-ju’s concerned voice rang through the room._

 

_“Are you okay? Did you finish the quest? What happ--”  He fired questions at her, but Hee-ju couldn’t stop herself from sharing the news._

 

_“Se-ju, I'm okay! Yes, I finished it and I won." She looked over at Jin-woo and corrected herself, "We won."_

  

_Se-ju went quiet._

 

_“I’m fine. I went into the dungeon to complete the quest and get the key for Emma, but something happened.”_

 

_Se-ju's silence was short-lived,_ _“Thank goodness, that’s why I've been wanting to call you. There might be a problem with Emma, actually, I was talking to Yang-ju and he said--”_

 

_“No, Se-ju,” she interrupted. “There's no problem! I did it. I beat the quest and I got Jin-woo out-- he’s here with me right now.”_

 

_“...Se-ju,” Jin-woo said, simultaneously a greeting and the proof she knew her brother would need in order to believe she'd done what she claimed._

 

_“Yoo Jin-woo?” He asked, knowing very well there was only one person whose voice that could be._

 

_“Thank you for all your help. I got here just in time to help Hee-ju,” he said, ignoring the question._

 

_“...”_

 

_Hee-ju could hear all the questions Se-ju wasn’t asking. After all, they had talked extensively about what would happen after Hee-ju retrieved the Key to Heaven from the dungeon._

 

_Rather, if... she got the key._

 

_They talked about how she would bring it to Emma and follow whatever instructions were given in order to rescue Jin-woo. Keep leveling up until she got to Level 100? Complete a special mission? She would’ve done anything._

 

_So the fact that Hee-ju didn’t have to… well, Se-ju was stumped._

 

_“Se-ju?” Hee-ju said, after a few minutes of silence. He still hadn’t said anything, but she could hear him pacing back and forth and eventually the sound of typing, like he was on his computer._

 

_“Sorry, I’m here,” he said quickly. “I was just… confirming something,” he explained._

 

_Jin-woo leaned in closer to the phone, interest clearly piqued at whatever was happening inside Se-ju’s big brain. If he had an explanation for what happened, Jin-woo wanted to hear it._

 

_“As for what happened with Yoo Jin-woo,” Se-ju trailed off, like this was just another unbelievable thing in a string of impossible events._

 

_“I think it makes sense.”_

 

_“Why do you say that?” Hee-ju had opened her mouth to respond but Jin-woo beat her to it._

 

_“After you left for Spain, noona, I spoke to Yang-ju sunbae. I was checking in with him to make sure nothing was off with the game, no bugs, no glitches -- I wanted to make sure you could complete the quest without any unexpected issues. He said everything had been running perfectly fine, the only thing was that he had taken Emma’s character offline for reprogramming.”_

 

_Hee-ju jumped up in surprise, but Jin-woo just looked at her then back down to the phone, confused._

 

_“Why did he do that? Why does it matter?” He asked._

 

_Se-ju explained, “Well it normally wouldn’t affect anything in the game, but Emma played an integral part of your journey and she’s a necessary component of completing the quest. Yang-ju knew what happened to you and wanted to change her coding to make sure nothing like your situation ever happens again. He had no idea, obviously, what we had planned.”_

 

_Hee-ju was pacing back and forth listening to her brother’s words. So that’s why…_

 

_“So without Emma in the game,” Hee-ju began…_

 

_“The game automatically registered your character as Emma,” Se-ju finished for her._

 

_Jin-woo’s eyes widened and he looked back up at Hee-ju, but she knew he wasn’t really seeing her, he was back in the tunnel. He was reliving those first moments when Hee-ju had touched the key and the strange energy that overtook her._

 

_“Impossible…” he whispered, shaking his head._

 

_Se-ju continued on, “If you think about it, it makes complete sense. I based everything about her character off of you, noona. You even chose ‘Emma’ for your userID. In the absence of Emma's NPC, the game clearly decided to choose a replacement which ended up being you. It’s kind of... like fate.”_

 

_Hee-ju had suspicions ever since they escaped the dungeon, but to have them confirmed outright was something else. Of course Se-ju’s game would keep turning the tables on them until the very end._

 

_She was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of Jin-woo’s hysterical laughter and looked over to see his face in his hands._

 

_She was about to ask if he had finally lost it when he pulled his head up and pointed at her._

 

_“You really are magic, you know that?”_

 

_She cocked an eyebrow, unable to process her own thoughts much less his cryptic compliments. Hee-ju waited for him to elaborate._

 

_“Emma was the one who made me like this -- she essentially tried to kill me but ended up trapping me in the game instead. So, of course, you would somehow use Emma’s character traits to reverse everything and do the exact opposite of what she did,” he paused here, his eyes searching hers for a sign that she had made the same connection he did._

 

_“You saved me,” he finished, staring at her with a look she couldn't describe._

 

_Hee-ju remembered the awful feeling that flooded her heart when she heard Jin-woo recount his experience with Emma. She had known logically it had nothing to do with her, and yet she felt guilt all the same. So to hear that she was able to give him the ending he deserved by using the very thing that made him like this in the first place… it was… wow._

 

_Hee-ju was trapped by the look in Jin-woo’s eyes -- they held something like reverence. Flustered, she had no idea how to respond._

 

_Neither of them was able to look away from the other, and she felt the temperature rise in the room by a few degrees. The space suddenly felt too small for the both of them, especially since that look he was giving her made Hee-ju feel larger than life._

 

_Just when Hee-ju thought she would combust from the electricity crackling between them, the silence was broken by a voice on the line-- she had forgotten Se-ju was even on the phone._

 

_Clearly her brother had fully processed everything Jin-woo had said because all they heard in response was his awestruck whisper._

 

_“Daebak…”_

 

_Jin-woo didn't hesitate, taking the phone from the bed without breaking eye contact with Hee-ju. She didn’t know why but she suddenly felt grateful for her brother’s presence on the phone, feeling like she needed the buffer. She didn’t know what she’d do if she was truly alone with him._

 

_That grateful feeling lasted all of two seconds, right up until she heard Jin-woo’s next words:_

 

_“Thanks for all your help, Se-ju. You’re brilliant, if I had forgotten to mention. Our flight is first thing in the morning, so we’ll see you tomorrow night.”_

 

_Click._

 

_Jin-woo didn’t even wait for a response before he hung up, tossing the phone somewhere Hee-ju didn’t seem to notice at the moment._

 

_All she could see was him._

 

_***_

 

_The next morning, they were on the plane that would take them to their connecting flight in Barcelona._

 

_Hee-ju didn’t know when she would be in Granada next and was a little sad to leave again. But that bittersweet feeling was nothing compared to the excitement she felt at going back to Seoul with the man next to her. She didn’t think she would believe it until they were truly back home._

 

_Even if this turned out to be a dream, she would savor every second._

 

_Hee-ju reached over to place her right hand atop Jin-woo’s left one currently resting on his knee._

 

_“Hey,” she said, drawing his attention from the window as he waited for them to take flight._

 

_She looked into his eyes, overwhelmed with affection for this person sitting next to her._

 

_"I love you, too. You know that, right?” Hee-ju had never actually responded to his confession, but he had to know her feelings… didn’t he?_

 

_Jin-woo twisted the hand laying underneath hers so his palm faced upward, intertwining their fingers together. He wasn’t quite smiling with mouth, but she could see that his eyes were shining with happiness nonetheless._

 

_“I do,” he said, nodding slightly._

 

_Her heart flooded with warmth at his response, hardly recalling a time when this man didn’t mean everything to her._

 

_“I can’t believe we’ve already exchanged I love you’s and yet I still haven’t taken you out on one proper date,” he joked, bringing a smile to her face at the memory of their one failed outing._

 

_“That’s one of the first things we do when we get back to Seoul. I promise to finally be the normal boyfriend you deserve,” he smiled, throwing her a wink for good measure._

 

_Hee-ju laughed to herself in disbelief, the warm feeling taking root in her heart and deciding it wasn’t going anywhere._

 

_Normal._

 

_They would never be normal, Hee-ju thought, shaking her head as Jin-woo looked back to the window, hand still clasping hers tightly._

 

_But maybe now they finally had a shot at being happy._

 

_***_

 

Hee-ju placed the pot on the table and looked at her family already sitting, chatting happily as they waited for dinner. She felt awful for the way she had been so absent the past few months and decided to start making amends with a nice homemade meal.

 

She couldn’t remember the last time she had cooked her family.

 

“Do you need any help?” A voice called from the doorway to the kitchen, and she looked to see Jin-woo standing there with the help of his new cane.

 

Hee-ju rolled her eyes and shrugged off his offer.

 

“I took down fifty plus zombies by myself in an underground palace prison, I think I can manage. Now go sit down, you’ve been on your feet all day.”

 

“Yes, honey,” he replied, and she’d be lying if she said her heart didn’t skip a beat at his term of endearment.  

 

Jin-woo rolled his eyes in response to her nagging, but he smiled and listened to her anyway, making his way to the table, blatantly ignoring the looks on her family’s faces at Hee-ju’s words.

 

Se-ju choked on his water, Min-ju looked awestruck and immediately leaned over to ask Se-ju if she had really beaten up _fifty_ zombies, and her Halmoni just shook her head and pursed her lips muttering something about ‘young kids and their weird sense of humor’.  

 

Hee-ju had to smother her smile... she was glad to be home.

 

She was grateful Jin-woo listened to her, though. He really had been on his feet all day. After they landed in Korea, one of their first stops had been the company. The whispers had started the moment the two of them walked into the lobby, with everyone staring at Jin-woo like they were seeing a ghost. Though Hee-ju couldn’t really blame them.

 

As luck would have it, Yang-ju happened to be in the elevator as they made their way up to Sun-ho’s office and spent the entire 37 floors just gaping at Jin-woo. Hee-ju couldn’t remember ever seeing the man at a loss for words. Once the ding sounded, signifying their arrival, it was like he sprung into action. He didn’t even say anything to Jin-woo, just ran for Sun-ho’s office screaming, “YOU WON’T BELIEVE THIS!!!”

 

Jin-woo simply chuckled at his friend and followed at a much slower pace.

 

“At least that’s one less person we have to tell,” he had leaned over to whisper to Hee-ju, making her laugh too.

 

By the time Hee-ju and Jin-woo walked into the office, Sun-ho looked exasperated by Yang-ju’s flailing arms and loud yelling, clearly not believing his words. His hand was on his forehead, and he looked tired, but as he turned his attention to see who had entered his office, Sun-ho’s hand dropped like a dead weight.

 

Whatever binder of documents was on his desk fell to the floor causing papers to slide everywhere in disarray, but his eyes were trained on Jin-woo.

 

“Sheesh,” Jin-woo said, hobbling over to the couch to take a seat like this was still his own office, “Why do you look 10 years older when it’s only been a year, hyung?”

 

Hee-ju wasn’t surprised that ended up being the affectionate way Jin-woo decided to greet his oldest friend after having been believed dead for a year.

  
Sun-ho shot up from his chair and rushed over to Jin-woo, his eyes traveling from the cane to his leg, and to his face, eyes already filled with tears.

 

He stared at Jin-woo’s face for so long, probably debating whether or not this was a hallucination, until he took in Hee-ju and Yang-ju’s presence as well, deciding if they could see what he was seeing, then this must really be true.

 

He slapped him on the shoulder at the same time as he wiped his eyes carelessly, “You punk, is it really you?” Sun-ho asked, voice thick with tears, already knowing the answer.

 

Jin-woo just laughed and nodded before Sun-ho attacked him, hugging him so hard that they both fell onto the couch.

 

After that day, Jin-woo had been back to visit a few times, trying to ease himself back into this reality. Hee-ju was impressed with the way he was acclimating.

 

Se-ju and him actually went together a few times, as Se-ju continued to spend time at J One. He was feeling really inspired lately now that the pressure to help Hee-ju save Jin-woo had been relieved. She still couldn’t believe Se-ju had gone into the game for Jin-woo and that they had been meeting without her knowledge.

 

“Noona, is it ready yet?” Min-ju’s whining snaps Hee-ju out of her thoughts and reminds her that the food is getting cold.

 

She hurriedly places the rest of the dishes in the middle of the table and finds her seat next to Jin-woo. But he’s busy flicking her sister’s nose and teasing her for her impatience. Min-ju’s apologetic _Sorry ahjussi_ brings a smile to all of their faces.

 

Everyone begins reach for food and it’s messy, but it’s good. Jin-woo just sits back and tries to remember the last time he sat down to a family meal.

 

He watches fondly as Hee-ju scoops more meat onto Se-ju’s plate nagging that he needs to eat more, and laughs at the silent way Se-ju rolls his eyes, clearly used to this treatment from his big sister.

 

“So, ahjussi, now that you’re back… when are you going to propose?”

 

“MIN-JU!” Hee-ju whips her hands away from Se-ju’s plate, mortified as she grabs Min-ju’s head and slaps her hand over her mouth. But it’s too late and everyone else is already laughing at her tactlessness.

 

Trying not to embarrass Hee-ju further, he just sends Min-ju a wink and throws his finger over his lips in a _shhh_ gesture that causes her to start squealing under Hee-ju’s hand, though no one else notices.

 

He tries to divert everyone’s attention by asking for someone to pass one of the side dishes, but doesn’t expect the words he gets in in response, obviously said without thinking:

 

“Here, hyung.”

 

Jin-woo blinks at the term, and Se-ju, who had been the one to say it, looks shocked as well. He’s holding out the plate with wide eyes and Jin-woo can swear the tops of his ears are red. Min-ju’s words are long forgotten as everyone stares in shock at the comfortable way Se-ju addressed him.

 

Min-ju starts squealing for a different reason now, screaming  _CUUUTE_ while Halmoni just smiles adoringly at her grandson. Hee-ju, glad to be off the hot seat, can’t control her laughter at her brother’s sudden inability to look anyone in the eye.

 

Jin-woo, for his part, is actually… touched.

 

He thinks about the roller coaster his life has become since picking up Se-ju’s phone call that night and even though his magical game had often felt more like a curse… Jin-woo doesn’t see any other way he could’ve ended up right here.

 

With a new family -- no “practically” about it.

 

He’ll never say he’s thankful for something that turned him into a murderer and took away someone who was like a brother to him… he would carry those burdens with him for as long as he lived. But he couldn’t change those things now. And even though it still hurt most days, he wouldn’t waste this second chance he had been given. Even before being trapped in the game, he hadn’t lived much of a life. He’d been motivated by bitterness and vengeance and pettiness.

 

But when he looked into Hee-ju's eyes, what he saw there had become his new motivation. Jin-woo found himself waking up in the morning looking forward to the sound of her laughter and the feeling of her warmth.

 

Despite all the hardship, he couldn’t deny that something good had come from it all. And instead of fighting the warring emotions inside of him, Jin-woo decided to just let it be. After spending the last couple years trapped in a limbo between two worlds, he allows himself to accept that _this_ is his reality now.

 

He might even say he’s happy with it.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ugh I still love reading that last scene. Let's all pretend this is how the show ended and Jin-woo finally got the happy family that he deserves. 
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading and sending me love for this story. I hope it helped fill those gaps the show left and that you guys enjoyed, love you all!!! <3


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